Nyhaven: Views From Within (Nuclear City - 5/8)

[kbieniu7]

Nice networks, but I think sometime roads are too croocked 

[woodb3kmaster]

Battlecat: Thank you, my friend! It's good to know that my projects in Nyhaven are going so well. Keep up the great work over at Adara!

Pat: No worries, you can drop in any old time! Thanks for your compliment!

kbieniu7: Thank you! In many parts of Nyhaven, the roads are the way they are to imitate the very unpredictable real-world angles and curves of real roads; Jon (JBSimio) used to do the same thing over in Covington. Nevertheless, I have tried to make more use of the NAM smooth curves in newer suburbs.



I've realized that, in the midst of my hectic school schedule, I forgot to uphold my promise to post scenes from my latest SC4 work, so please accept my apology for that little oversight! I'm making it up to you all today, though, with the following picture:



This little mosaic shows my first attempt at creating a large park with the BSC's set of park lots, out in the new suburb of Overland Park, which was named after this park. I'm pretty pleased with the way it turned out. You're always welcome to let me know what you think, though!

[Battlecat]

I like what you've done there!  That's an awesome and huge park.  It could use forested section but that's just my personal preference.  It still looks super! 

[kbieniu7]

Veray nice recreation area 
And about the croocked roads - I didn' thought about that, they have too much curves, but they are going up-down-up-down, what is most visible at the last screen 

[woodb3kmaster]

Battlecat: Thanks! This is definitely one of the larger parks in Nyhaven, that's for sure. There is, in fact, a small redwood grove, but you're right to say that there are no really big forested areas. I guess that's just how I build parks, though. Thanks for stopping by, my friend!

kbieniu7: Thank you! You're not the only person to point out how bumpy my transit networks sometimes are. Lately I've been experimenting with different slope mods, but it seems a lot of the more popular ones are so radical, I can't redraw many of my networks in the hills. So I'm currently adjusting the properties in an originally more tolerant mod in an attempt to get the right balance between smoothness and slope tolerance. I hope you like the results!





Like I said, we didn't have much time to rest between construction of the two parts of the rail beltway. All through construction of the first segment, one of my teams of engineers was busy preparing detailed plans for the second segment:





Between the two segments, this one would be a bit shorter than the first, and it would be a whole lot straighter. The plan was to lay down tracks from where we left off southwards to the riverbank, with a few turns here and there. There would also be a couple of spurs into the suburbs, similar to the ones we had already built. With the plans ready and contracts awarded, in late 2389 it was finally time to resume building.



South of the junction with the east-west mainline, it was business as usual. Workmen were busy grading the future path of the railroad for a few weeks...



...and then they laid the tracks down. It wasn't long until we came to the junction with the first of the new suburban spurs.



That spur continued a short distance before ending here, in the outskirts east of Ridgeland Park.



The next challenge was building a junction with the southwesterly mainline, a couple miles south of that spur. In the end, it was a complicated jumble of rails, but it was still functional.



In the neighborhood of Slauson Valley, we built a double spur. One side went to the edge of a nearby industrial park...



...while the other side terminated in a cozy little neighborhood near a high school.



Still, work continued. As 2390 was drawing to a close, the construction crews came to the edges of a new neighborhood near the Sawtelle Wood. We made sure to put a station in the Sawtelle Village commercial zone, since more commuters passing through would bring more customers to the local businesses.



A little ways to the south, we had previously secured a right-of-way for this project, knowing that development would soon come to this area, near a BMX park that was used in the Simlympics. We were right on the money with that prediction, and so we were thankful that we had enough land to work in when our workers arrived on the scene.



At last, it came time to build the rail beltway's southeastern terminus, a junction with the railroad that ran along the riverbank. Since nearby Front Street was a busy road, this junction had to be partially elevated.



With spring in the air, it didn't take much time to start raising the new sections of viaduct over the roadway.



At last, in the summer of 2391, the junction was done and the whole railroad was opened for use. What a feeling, to see the first commuter trains running down those rails!




Here's a map showing Nyhaven's major arterial roads, highways and railroads. You can also see just how much the city has grown in recent years. All those new residents are doubtless thankful for projects like this one and Route 148.

Until next time...

[JBSimio]

I've lurked here long enough...

This is such an inspiring MD for me... it's all so realistic!  I love the way you present things with the planning stage followed by the building stage.  It's given me more ideas for my MD than I know what to do with.  This latest update with the rails is one that I will probably look back to several times as I try to figure out how best to serve my own community.  There are a lot of good shots here... although I have to admit that 22.5 is a favorite of mine.  (A very nice mix of smooth curves and old junctions... sometimes that's the best we can get!)

Great things keep happening here, and I'll be watching even if I don't say much 

JB

[Battlecat]

Nice update.  That railway is coming along quite nicely.  Great use of the wide angle curves!

[woodb3kmaster]

Jon (JBSimio): Wow! It's not often that one of SC4D's great BATters and MDers comes to visit Nyhaven, so welcome! Thank you so much for your kind words. I had no idea I was such an inspiration to a community luminary like you; I'm humbled and honored at the same time! I hope I can continue to inspire you, just as much as your BATting has inspired me. (I love your school packs and use them all over the city! Perhaps my favorite, for its versatility, is the John Novac Consolidated School, but really, they're all such great schools, it's hard to choose just one as a favorite!) You're welcome to visit Nyhaven again any time, my friend! Take care!

Battlecat: Thank you! I try to make as much use of the wide-angle curves and FARR as I can when building new quads, though I'll also try to rebuild existing railways whenever possible. It's great to know I'm "on the right track"! Come back soon!



It may still feel like Wednesday night here in California, but I know it's already Thursday in most of the world, so that means it's time for another look at my latest work! Recently, I've been trying my hand at making some custom park lots, as well as relotting existing BATs to create a cohesive look for a given area of the city. In particular, this week's images come from Fitzsimmons Square, located east of Kendall's CBD:





This is an overall view of the square looking north. Fitzsimmons Square is one of Kendall's cultural hot-spots, and is home to the awe-inspiring Cathedral of the Redeemer (the Berliner Dom, available on the LEX), Kendall's main convention center (the custom-lotted Palast der Republik, also on the LEX), the ultra-modern Arthur Fitzsimmons Concert Hall (Disney Hall, at dmscopio's website www.davidluart.com), and the Kendall Metropolitan Opera House (a relot of torremayor's Opera de Bastille, once again at the LEX). The square itself is also a custom lot, centered on the NDEX Konietzko Fountain, which is on the STEX.



Looking south now, here's a clearer view of the front of the Metropolitan Opera House. Near the front is a small bazaar and a memorial column to Arthur Fitzsimmons, one of Kendall's greatest patrons of the arts and a major philanthropist (actually, this is Odainsaker's Alexander Column, available on the STEX). He bequeathed a large portion of his estate to the city to finance the opera house and the concert hall, and so the entire square was renamed in his honor. Across the street is the Fitzsimmons Square station of the nascent Kendall Subway (hmm, someone should do something about those shacks near one of the station's staircases!).

I hope you liked this little look at some of my lotting efforts! Check back next Thursday for the next story update!

[thundercrack83]

Hi, Zack!

So sorry that it's been so long since I commented here, but I've been visiting in the shadows the whole time!

Nyhaven's going as strong as ever, my friend--I love the new custom lots, Fitzsimmons Square looks fantastic! I was eyeing up the Walt Disney Music Hall earlier today actually, and now that I've seen it here, I'll be downloading it for sure!

Keep up the fantastic work, my friend, and I'll be back to see more!

Dustin

[MaximePenen]

Very, very nice work indeed.

Two (small) questions: does anyone have direct links to the custom-lotted Palast der Republik (or is this just Marcszar's original)? Same for the Opera de Bastille. The LEX search is failing me it seems

Thanks in advance.

[Glowbal]

I really love that square!

btw, Disney Hall is now also avaible on the LEX and STEX I thought.

[bat]

Fantastic updates and pictures of your great city! Nice squares!

[woodb3kmaster]

Dustin (thundercrack83): Thanks for stopping by! No need to apologize - I'm sure the combined responsibilities of being an admin and running Marathon (not to mention RL!) leave you without a great deal of free time for posting here. I really appreciate your kind words, and I'm grateful to receive such praise for my own LE endeavors from someone whose own custom lotting has served as an inspration to me! Take care, my friend!

MaximePenen: Thank you! Those custom lots are actually my own work; they're not online anywhere. If you really want them, though, just PM me and I'll put them on my website for you to download. I should warn you, though - you'll need a few dependencies for them to look right.

Glowbal: Thanks! You're right; dmscopio did recently upload Disney Hall both here and at ST. Thanks for pointing that out!

bat: Thank you! Your comments are always welcome here, my friend.



Before I show you today's update, I think it's fitting that I mention that Nyhaven's nation of Lower Columbia is now a member of the Alliance of Independent Nations. I had considered joining a union for a while (and I was involved with URSC when it was alive), but it took me a while to find one that would allow me a good amount of autonomy while still providing all the usual benefits of being united with other great MDs. I look forward to working with my new allies very much!

Now then, on with the show!





It was a bright September morning when I arrived at work. I was used to the crowds at City Hall Metro Station, but today was different. It seemed like the crowds followed me into City Hall, the place was so busy. I had a hard time just trying to get to my office!



All day, it felt like I was working in a beehive. The noise of all my coworkers and visitors was relentless! I knew something had to be done to relieve the mounting pressure inside City Hall, so I started working on a new project. It seemed like Nyhaven had outgrown its municipal offices, so I created a plan for a bigger City Hall. A few weeks later, when I presented my idea to the city council, everyone agreed that it was time to upgrade our facilities. So, with Mauor Lundgren's approval, I set up a team to design the new building. We expected the rest of the city to support our plan, but what happened after I presented the plan to the media in December?



At first, I was taken aback. Why would anyone oppose the city upgrading its offices? However, the Historical Society had a point; it wouldn't be right to just tear down a piece of Nyhaven's history.



A few weeks later, we struck a deal with the Historical Society: Instead of just demolishing the old City Hall, we agreed to carefully dismantle it and rebuild it in Knowledge Park, the northermost part of the parks belt. It was convenient that a large-enough field was available to hold the building. With that, there were no more obstacles in our way.



In April 2392, we moved all city offices into temporary quarters in a nearby vacant skyscraper so the careful work of breaking down the old City Hall piece by piece could begin. All through that spring and summer, the old building was taken apart, stone by stone, and its components were shipped to Knowledge Park.



At last, in late August, the final few pieces were packed up. Now the construction of a monumental new building could begin.



First, the foundations for the new building were sunk deep into the hill on which downtown is built.



As I watched construction progress from my temporary office, I was excited to see the first few floors built...



...followed by several more stories in the following weeks.



At the same time, we decided it was appropriate to renovate Founders' Square to match the new City Hall's plazas. The old statues were carefully taken down off their mounts as the old pavement was removed and the fountains drained.



Remodeling the square took hardly any time at all. It was ready before the new building was, even though we only started the renovations after ground was broken for the new City Hall! I have to say, the new square looks pretty darn good.




At last, in July 2393, I could finally move into the new building! It was huge compared to the old City Hall, and all that extra space meant no more overcrowding. What a relief!



Of course, downtown wasn't the only construction site in this process. At about the same time, the old City Hall was reopened in Knowledge Park as the city's newest museum. I think it fit in pretty well with the surrounding buildings.

[Ryan B.]

I only have one thing to say about Image 12:

LET'S GO BUFF-A-LO!

Great update on City Hall!

[Battlecat]

Nice update!  Quite a task to move a building even of the size of your old city hall!  Glad to see this city is willing to go to this much effort to retain significant historical buildings.

[danielcote]

I like how you aknowledge the importance of historical buildings and keep them while being a very progresive state.

[Glowbal]

Nice new square!

If I may ask, where did you get the building with the red attene (sp?) on top (this one: [/img]http://www.aanhrush.com/images/nyhaven2/upd23img12b.jpg[/img].

And as always, I can't wait for the new update. 

[Speedbump Joey]

I have absolutley loved watching this one develop. I love the rail lines and highways. I enjoy your maps that you have created and cannot wait to see what the International Airport develops into.

[woodb3kmaster]

Ryan B.: I figured you'd like seeing a hometown icon here in Nyhaven. Glad you like the update, and thanks for stopping by!

Battlecat: Thank you for your kind words, my friend! It just didn't seem right to simply scrap such a valuable piece of Nyhaven's history. As revealed way back in Update 2, the old city hall is where Lower Columbia's constitution was written, over three centuries ago. There's no way the site of such a momentous event could just be destroyed! Take care - and keep up the great work over at Adara!

Daniel (danielcote): Thanks! As I said above, a building as historically significant as the old city hall (whose importance I described above to Battlecat) just had to be preserved.

Glowbal: Thank you very much! The building with the antenna is Odainsaker's Tower Life Building, available on the STEX via the link I have provided. Come back soon, my friend!

Speedbump Joey: Welcome to Nyhaven, and thanks for your kind words! I'm glad you're such a fan of all my infrastructure projects and maps. If you're curious about the airport, you can read all about how its newest terminal came to be in Update 14.



Well, it's been quite a week for me. Not only did I move into a new abode (still in LA, if you're curious); I've also started a summer language course in Ancient Greek. And boy, is this class ever "intense"! If you'd like to know more about my daily life, you can now follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/woodb3kmaster. Anyway, it's time for this week's look at another of Nyhaven's attractions...




This is the Nyhaven area's first-ever BMX park, constructed to host the mountain biking events for the Simlympics. It may be hard to see, but there are a few little hills and valleys that the triple circuit winds through, along with the streams that riders have to ford. Since this facility was designed with a major competition in mind, camera towers are scattered along the tracks to provide the most possible media coverage. (I don't know why, but for seome reason, the game wouldn't let me place the draggable paths on those two empty cells in front of one set of bleachers.)

[Speedbump Joey]

Enjoyed this one, nice use of space to create some greenery in between several roadways.