Greenacre

[CasperVg]

Great update, Matt! The shorelines and beach area look really nice. Also I love the GLR along the seaside, gives townies a chance to go to the beach without spending tons of money on fuel and polluting the air. I'm looking forward to next issue.

[Jmouse]

The beach looks good now, Matt, and pretty realistic.  You are right about the density of residential and commercial structures because any beach-front real estate is a highly coveted commodity.

I have no objection to stone walls because I like to use terracing as a landscaping tool. I seem to recall Dave (tooheys) using them quite effectively. Maybe he'll expound on the idea in the NUTs thread if he ever comes back.

As for the flora, the palm trees fit in with the environs although I'm not sure about planting them on a soccer field (footie pitch) 33.03. I like the way you've finished off the beach in 33.04, but it makes me wish we'd finished our beach ends.

I might have expected to see more hotels and high-brow restaurants crowded behind the beach in the hopes of snagging some tired and hungry tourists. This is a throwback to my own memories of the beach in Galveston, Texas, though. I recall my mother and I going to one of the seafood restaurants there when I was fairly young. I ordered baked flounder, and when the waiter put the plate before me, there laid a whole fish. Whole...

...Here's lookin' at you!
-Joan

[Skimbo]

Nice work on that beach but you should fix your GLR skin.

[rooker1]

I like how it turned out.  As for loathing anything.....the palm trees are your own chioce, other than that, I am very happy.
I would still like you to change the flow of traffic.  I think the main strip along the shore should be street and there should be roads going through the res area.  I do like the tram line, that was a nice added touch.  And very nice job finishing off the beach ends.

Nothing I loathe in this update....not really.

Robin 

[noahclem]

Very nice work on the beach area Matt!  I think the lotted beaches turned out very nice and that more uniform, pre-fab look suits the area very nicely. I think using SAM (maybe Hableurg's asphalt streets) and smoothing out some of those slopes could make the area look even nicer.

Look forward to more 

[nedalezz]

That beach area really came together perfectly at the end

I really like the whole atmosphere of the place - its very California.

As for the beach itself, it looks gorgeous

[Tomas Neto]

Nice beach, really a great work!!! 

[ricardomiranda]

Developing well planned and very good updates!

[threestooges]

Replies:
-bat: Thanks bat. It's taken some work, but the area here is slowly coming together.


-Casper (CasperVg): Thanks! Good to see you back around here. The GLR was initially only a means to get visitors up and down the beach itself (as shown back here with the South Coast Trolleyway), but it is being developed from a touristy novelty into a system that will hopefully reduce the increasing burden on the surrounding roads. I'll be interested to get the European take on it.


-Joan (Jmouse): Thanks, and it's always good to read your thoughts here. Hotels aren't quite within the zoning plan here (kept intentionally more residential), but you're right about it being a good tourist location. Perhaps a few hotels will pop up down the line. The concept of palm trees on the field/pitch was the idea that trees were kept in an area that was originally quite dense, and one that I wanted to keep looking a bit dense. I'll admit, it'll raise a bit of a problem if someone goes running full-tilt, but I've seen games played close to obstacles like that before without too much difficulty. If it were a professional pitch, it'd certainly be much clearer around the edges. Thanks for noticing it though.


-Skimbo: Thanks. Glad you like it. The GLR has been taken care of. The dual skins came from a recent rebuild of my plugins, where both the Leipzig and BART skins made it in. I've kept the BART theme for the buses, but opted for the Leipzig style for the GLR. Thanks for bringing that up.


-Robin (rooker1): I couldn't help but give you a bit off ribbing given your general dislike of the way the game tends to integrate its palm trees into lots and roads. The tunnel, as you'll see, worked out nicely, and traffic is flowing much better indeed. Always good to see you here.


-Noah (noahclem): The beaches are actually the Beaches for Irregular Coasts found here. The slopes tend to be a bit tricky, but I may try to straighten them out in the future; the SAM too would be a good idea, and it seems like the asphalt street would help mesh the lots with the streets. However, given the relative travel seen by both areas, I think I might also keep them distinct colors, to suggest/reinforce the different materials. I like the thoughts.


-nedalezz: Glad to hear you like it, and also glad to hear it's reminiscent of California too. I'm going to see how well it works blending/altering the flora pattern as development proceeds down the coast while trying to keep the same California feel.


-Tomas Neto: Glad you like it. There's still more to come.


-ricardomiranda: Thanks, and welcome to Greenacre.


Today, we focus our attention to the other side of the beach.

First, Robin noted that a tunnel to the industrial area near the bridge would help with the flow of traffic.

The area around the bridge head is suitable for it, having both good soil properties and strength, as well as having several higher population buildings around to justify it.

34.01


Removing the retaining walls and road to ensure proper tunnel-laying conditions exist:

34.02


Unfortunately, the automatic terrain adjustment was just too much for the bridge footing to bear.

34.03


However, it's replaced quickly enough., and there is new land on the other side ready to be developed.

34.04


Now then, we turn to the area around the bridge and tunnel. The hard edge of the beach may have struck you already, and the barren land under and around the bridge generally sits in contrast to the lush areas further down the coast from last update.

35.05


Some work with a selection of flora options, including Chrisadams' RRP, c.p.'s  oak/maple forest, and the coconut trees by goldiva, and the area seems like it's more natural (hopefully)

35.06


Some additional work under the water, around the bridge pillars, and down along the shore, using goldiva's tropical flora and reefs, the underwater area begins to match the floral density of the shoreline.

35.07


From here, we'll move north, and up into the industrial area that the tunnel was built to aid.
-Matt

[dedgren]

Matt, Matt, where do I start...

You have about the best back-and-forth with your readers I've ever seen in an MD or city journal.  The only rival I can think of is John (Darmok) back in the salad days of Anduin Valley Revisited [linkie].  I know how hard that is to maintain.

Oh, and did I mention the K-Point?

Greenacre has always been a thinking person's MD.  I'm pretty sure that's why you attract such great constructive comments.  I need to go back about a year and catch myself back up- it is great to see you still at this.

Beaches?  They are so hard to work with- that's why I never needed no stinking beaches.  Seriously, the hard edges have always been very offputting to me- my middle name should probably have been "Natureabhorsastraightline," but my parents felt obligated for some reason in 1952 to honor the next Vice President [linkie].

Anyway, that all for now.  Nothing to loathe here.  Move along, move along.


David

[bat]

Nice work on that bridge!!
And looking forward to the industrial area...

[rooker1]

 Fantastic.
I always find it very interesting when an author gets into 25 pages plus to go from the thier lastest update and than to go to thier first.  What a huge improvement in your style, technique and overall game play!
I see you have some new palms, very refreshing overt he maxis ones.  The finer details you have added to the bridge side of the beach and in the water looks great.  It's funny how this game has lead away from actual city building to overall realism in every aspect....from city to farming to very quante nature scenes.
Nothing to complain about this update.  I am very glad that you had the grid turned off in the first and last two pics.

Robin 

[Jmouse]

This is an especially good update, Matt. It's always interesting to see how MD authors deal with the various challenges SC4 presents (34.02). We all know tight spots happen as development progresses and sometimes it's impossible to be as selective with the "B" tool as we'd like to be. You certainly made the best of it, though.

I've noticed your knack for building tunnels (34.03). I seldom even think about them unless I'm faced with a mountain and need to get to the other side. I'm so glad you included the step-by-step guide, too. I'd never have figured out how you got from point A (34.01) to point B (34.06). Nice job on the under-bridge seascape, too (34.07).

Excellent work...
Joan

[threestooges]

Replies:
-David (dedgren): That's high praise indeed being compared to AVR. Not sure I have that level of interplay, or even as much as 3RR, but I do enjoy seeing their reactions, and as I'm sure you've seen, there have been plenty of great suggestions by folks. I'm not too sure what you mean by a "thinking person's" MD, but there definitely have been some thoughtful comments along the way (yours included).

As for the beaches, I had been working with Joan on a lot to help blur the transition, and we may still move forward with it. It's been mainly a matter of texture working to get the alphas properly faded. At any rate, I'm glad my attempt to blend the edges in worked reasonably well. Nature doesn't quite get along with straight lines too well, sure enough. Even man-made beaches have their touches of nature too.

Always a pleasure to see you here; with a highly complementary and insightful comment as usual.


-bat: Thanks bat! I've always liked tight-knit sections of transit that weave around each other, and the effect the tunnel adds is one such example. Hopefully the beginnings of the "industrial sector" won't disappoint.


-Robin (rooker1): Scary to go back to those first pages here, isn't it? Oddly, in a way, I'm kind of revisiting those pages with each subsequent "renovation" I do of an area. Greenacre started to take shape maybe a year or two before it was first published. A lot has changed since then, and it's interesting to go back to the older cities to see where things have been.

I love the work people have done in increasing the realism for practically every aspect of the game too, and it doesn't seem to be showing any signs of slowing.

The grid itself was left on intentionally to give better perspective on the construction (what little there was involved), but yeah, a few clean pics are really needed to show off a completed area.


-Joan (Jmouse): If you like to see how issues are dealt with as development progresses, you'll see a good example of it in a few updates from now (yes, I actually have a bit of a reserve built up now). I don't know that I have a "knack" for tunnels, but it certainly fit the bill there due to the proximity with the bridge footing.

Always good to hear your thoughts Joan.


This is what the area looks like now that the tunnel has been added, and the road connected.

35.01


This is the area we'll be working in. Things to do:
-get rid of that blasted garbage dump
-get ridge of the hodge-ppdge industrial buildings to make room for a more cohesive theme
-add some additional residential area up on the hill to begin a terraced look
-add a bit of commercial zoning on the new road from the tunnel

35.02


The end result of prep work and zoning.

35.03


Moving on up the little bay (north) from the tunnel and bridge, we find some newly accessible land, ripe for development. With the new connection between industry and residences, several commercial offices and stores were built to capitalize on the increased traffic to the warehouses and the Canada Dry bottling plant.

35.04


Down the road a bit are some additional warehouses and some larger industrial complexes, taking advantage of the local freight station for easier shipping. With the storage, and transit infrastructure, it's likely this place may soon develop a secondary port to compete with Mustang Harbor.

35.05


Meanwhile, up the hill, a new swath of multi-story condos and apartments have gone up, taking full advantage of the views from up there, but suffering slightly from the minimal parking. Fortunately though, a number of the residents are able to just walk down the hill to work along the road.

35.06


So that's about it for this time. Here's a look at how everything's changed from where we started.

35.07


Thoughts, as always, are welcome.
-Matt

[Sciurus]

It's been (again? ) a long time I didn't post there... just to say:
Great transformation!!
On question: how did you do to erase garbage?

Guillaume

[bat]

That area is looking really great now!

[Jmouse]

I agree completely with your decision to move/get rid of the industrial area, Matt. Based on my own RL observations, industries are more hidden and often on the outskirts of towns. I can't speak for large cities, but when we used to go to Dallas, I never saw any although we made the trip, took care of business and left with no detours.

I like the way you're dealing with terracing. I'll be doing a lot of it myself one of these days. The jetty or seawall in 35.03 looks good, too. It kind of adds a finishing touch. Returning to the subject of commerce and industry, the Canada Dry building looks right at home in 35.04. We had a similar Coke facility in town - a huge building right on one of the main drags. The offices are well placed in that photo, too.

I guess 35.06 is my favorite in this batch, in part because it's an attractive close up which shows off your work with landscaping. In fact, I'm seeing a lot of improvement in your work and good ideas carried out since you started playing the game more often. It pays to play.

Good job...
-Joan

[rooker1]

Hello Matt,
I hope all is well with you.  How goes the job hunt, still working as a volunteer?
I really like the new tunnel to the industrial area and that you tore down the old area for this new one.  Great chioce of custom lots.  The rail through the area is perfect and I like the FARR peice.
I wish you would change your electrical power lines to PEG Power Tower Pylons 1 or fukuda's High Tension poles 1...I hate the Maxis red ones.  
I do like jeronij's rocks wall for the shorelines, but check these out.....nbvc's Riprap Seawall and nbvc's Riprap Seawall Addon.
I don't really like the terrace section, but I can't really pin point what it is I dont like.  It just looks a little awkward.  I'll give it some more thought and come back tomorrow.

Robin 

[ricardomiranda]

I really enjoyed the seaweed and small rocks under the bridge, you can pass me the link? I still enjoy a good deal of your city!

[Terring7]

I like how you made all those changes, especially with the beach. I'll "steal" some of your ideas