Greenacre

[noahclem]

Great work with the additions to the educational campus     The details of the schools are nicely put together, as are the flora and landscaping. Great fall colors too 

[RickD]

Glad to see a new update here. It is interesting to follow you through the development of the area. It reminds me very much of my own playing style.

The finished area turned out very nice and believable. I would have changed only one minor thing. I would turn the smaller building in the lower right corner 90 degrees, so that the main entrance does not face the avenue. Imagine all the students running out of the building directly onto the avenue.

[rooker1]

I must agree with the others, it is really great to see another update from you.
Very nice and well thought out expansion.

Robin

[Jmouse]

It's great to see another Greenacre update, and as always, I really like the way you share your thoughts with us as you develop your ideas.

The transformation from bare bones (43.05) to finished product (43.15 and .16) is amazing. You have done a good job of adding the obligatory sports venues as well. I agree with Raphael (RickD) that turning the smaller building would be worth a try, but otherwise, you've done a fine job of creating a complex academic compound.

I hope there won't be as much time and space between this update and the next one...
-Joan

[threestooges]

Casper (CasperVg): Thanks Casper! Cliffton is going to go through several updates. The hope when I'm done is that it will look like a university that has expanded over time and taken influence from several decades. Since you're well-entrenched in university life, if you haveany suggestions, fire away.


Noah (noahclem): Thanks Noah. I feel like I could stand to add a few more finer details, but I'm not quite sure what it needs. Maybe I just need to spend a day on campus and find out what's missing. If you have any thoughts for sections, I'm all ears.


Rick (RickD): I love your playing style. I can only hope mine will produce the same results. Your story in Empire Bay has been fun to follow. I still can't help but expect Family Guy puns based on the Pewterschimdt legacy there. The beauty of this game, over real life, is that a building can be rebuilt in the blink of an eye. The board of trustees of Cliffton University have authorized some renovations.


Robin (rooker1): I'm pleased to see the reception for having a new update. I'm just sad that it's been so long that everyone's surprised by it. I should try to keep things more regular here, instead of having regular irregularity. Always good to hear from you Robin.


Joan (Jmouse): Based on discussion within the university's board of trustees, the building has been relocated as you'll see below. Thoughts of additions are welcome as well.


The university's board of trustees convened a meeting based on public comments on the new expansion. One change that was discussed was the orientation of one of the buildings.

44.01


The building has since been rotated to face off the avenue creating a safer environment for students leaving the building and less traffic created by people stopping for drop-offs and pickups. When asked about the rotation of the building, the board replied "You mean it didn't always face that way?" before quickly exiting the press conference.

44.02


The newly paved parking lot has been seeing some good use, and the local commercial enterprises have been thriving with the new influx of traffic.

44.03


Perkin's Cafe has been one of the greatest beneficiaries of the expansion, quickly becoming one of the premiere late-night hangouts for the students (inebriated or otherwise). They're particularly known for a dish called the Garbage Plate Challenge: a mountain of hashbrowns (around a pound's worth), 5 eggs, 1/4 lb bacon, 1/4 lb sausage, 4 British bangers, 4 slices of fried bread, sauteed onions, a generous helping of chili, and if you order the 50/50 half of it is covered in gravy, all of it is topped with cheese. It'll generally feed a group of four, but if you can finish it by yourself in under three hours and not die, you get your picture up on the Wall-of-Fame (referred to by some as the "Wall-of-Shame", but those are just the jealous ones who couldn't finish it) and your meal is on the house. In keeping with the name, it's served on a (clean, unused for garbage) aluminum trash can lid.

The coffee there is pretty good too. Order it after midnight and it'll hold a spoon upright in it.

44.04


All of the  incoming students will need a place to stay, and since fraternal (and sororital... is that a word?) organizations tend to lay down roots, there is plenty of off-campus housing available. The university does not permit affiliated organizations to post their letters on the outside of their houses, which is something the city council enjoys. However, once the weekend nears (Thursday nights) any number of students can tell you where the next big shindig is.

44.05


Now, Perkins Cafe has some decent coffee, but for some of the best in town you'll find little better than a little place that took over an old Thai restaurant. They haven't updated their banner sign yet (budget problem) but with the business they're doing that should change soon. There's already a well-worn path from "frat row" to the shop, and it gets wider the closer it gets to finals season.



Also, the light rail system runs by the area as well, so that will open up new areas of the town to Cliffton, and that little corner gas station is making a killing as well.



Hope you enjoyed. As always, comments and suggestions are always welcome. Want to see some area of Greenacre? Just ask and maybe we'll see it soon.
-Matt

[art128]

Very nice update, Matt. You've done an excellent work with this area. The newly rotated college does the job better. I just think it could need a bit of lotting in order to put some slope conforming fences.

[sim_link]

Nice work with the area, and the humour in the update is a really nice touch. 

[RickD]

Now imagine the confusion when the students arrive the next morning and the building has turned 90 degrees. 

The Garbage Plate Challenge ... uhm ... no. I'll pass. 

[Jmouse]

Good one, Matt. Even better is the narrative which fairly screams *BEWARE* You are outnumbered by NUTty college students! I like the mixture of architectural styles in 44.05. Not sure how realistic is comes across, but it sure beats the ordinarily cookie-cutter look of student housing. And the small building does look more plausible facing the street.

-Joan

[noahclem]

Nice update Matt    The garbage plate challenge actually made me hungry enough that I had to take a break from reading to make myself breakfast    --though certainly not hungry enough to pass the challenge. The development of the college area continues nicely and full of character. The re-orientation of the college was a great move and I'm glad to see trams making their way through the area. Looking forward to more 

[Swordmaster]

Nice work, Matt. I think the word is sororal, by the way.

Cheers
Willy

[threestooges]

Replies:

Arthur (art128): I agree some slope-conforming fences would help, but the LE scares me, heh. I know I wrote that tutorial on it a while back, but aside from knowing the basics of how to do things, I lack the aesthetic ability and knowledge of props out there to truly use it to its best effect. Glad to hear the rest of it is fitting the bill though. Always good to hear from you Art.


sim_link: Glad you enjoy the humor. I try to add a little bit here and there where I can. Gives a little extra to the people who take the time to look a little closer to things.


Raphae (RickD): Confusion? What confusion? The building has always faced that way. Maybe they should lay off certain beverages and Garbage Plate Challenges. That's their story and they're sticking to it. Unofficially, of course, the final results did turn out well I think. Rotating the building was a good touch.


Joan (Jmouse): I think the university is expecting to continue expanding. When it will do so is up for debate. As for the housing in 44.05, that isn't official student housing as much as they are private residences which have been taken over by the student body. Campus housing by the university is something that the board is looking into developing, but for the fraternal and sororal (Thanks Willy), they just took over what was there. Always good to hear from you here Joan.


Noah (noahclem): Breakfast is always a good decision. Not quite sure it's physically possible to eat such a creation (and frankly with the amount of stuff in it, the eggs would almost be more of a binder than an ingredient. Plenty of trams in the area. At some point I hope to pull off the look as well as you do (tips are appreciated... actually, we'll discuss that later). Always good to hear from you Noah.


Willy (Swordmaster): Thanks for the tip there Willy. Should have looked that up (but then again, it amused me to guess at it). Glad to know what the actual word is. Hope you enjoyed the rest of it.


So I've been working on several projects, but none of them were small enough to produce a finished product in any polished form. So that being said, the next few updates are all going to be progress updates. Excuse the inherent flaws, but feel free to point them out so I make sure not to miss them. This is all in-progress work.

Where we're going now is back to the naval base in Mustang Harbor. The area grew over time and, from a tactical point of view, the islands are making ship movement increasingly difficult with bridges and ferry traffic taking over the area. Additionally, being tucked in the islands, makes it difficult to move things out in an expedient fashion should the need arise. As a result the facility is going to be moved to a bay on one of the outer islands; specifically to Point Atascocita. We'll get to that later. For now, here's the overview:

45.01


Ignore the depth of the water. That, as well as the lack of flora, will change as things go forward. Dredging operations are already under way.

That said, here's what all needs to be moved:

This carrier is soon to be retired, but a replacement is expected to be christened from the NDEX Shipyards shortly:

45.02


A collecti0on of destroyers play double duty; acting as naval units as well as assisting the Coast Guard when operations necessitate it (Greenacre does have a fair bit of water to cover). These will be relocated.

45.03


The subs here are scheduled for some tweaks, but they will make the move as well, with a new facility to be constructed at the new base.

45.04


Two battleships inhabit the harbor. Both are slated for decomissioning, and are not expected to be relocated to the new facility. There have been rumblings from some of the historic preservation groups about the planned decommissioning, but no plans have been announced for preservation. The structures surrounding the docks are planned to be removed as well to allow for new development.

45.05


The Coast Guard station here is instrumental in patrolling the waters of Mustang Harbor as well as the greater surrounding waters, and it is planned for this facility to remain operational. The storage shed behind it is slated for demolition to make room for additional parking.

45.06


Here's the area after the ships have been moved and demolition completed. Concrete pads have been left for new development as soon as the city is able to complete approval for the re-zoning plans. It's anticipated that several infrastructure improvements will be needed.

45.07


This particular parcel has been selected to be turned into a park. Civic planners have made it a point to preserve some green space in what is expected to become a highly dense area.

45.08


The concrete was removed, and a decorative seawall was constructed, including a carousel. Who doesn't love an amusement ride by the sea?

45.09


With a playground and gazebo for picnics, this open space will hopefully prove useful to the new residents that are expecting to reside herein the future.

45.10


As I said, this is a work in progress, so any and all thoughts about the progress of things are appreciated. Hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you back here in about a week.
-Matt

[Swordmaster]

Great to see you back here! Too bad the navy has to move out... but urban renewal is such a fun thing to do.

Cheers
Willy

[Jmouse]

It's great to see a new update, Matt. As for being a work in progress, I've always thought of SC4 Dx/RH as a game one never really finishes. You can quit playing your region, but you never truly finish it.

Moving an entire naval base and fleet is a huge undertaking. Just the amount of manpower needed boggles the mind. I've always liked that aircraft carrier in 45.02, and 45.05 reminds me of The Battleship Texas, an integral part of the San Jacinto Battleground Monument which is a designated historical site. Maybe such a compromise would smooth the ruffled feathers of Greenacre's historical society.

That's a nice little park in 45.10, and I can imagine ways of making it even more inviting as time goes by. I'm eager to see what kind of housing pops up on the newly-cleared naval base. I would guess ritzy mid- to high-rise apartments, but that remains to be seen.

Good update. Interesting, well carried out and it left me looking forward to the next update. Very much so...
-Joan

[Schulmanator]

That's quite a transformation. Well done!

[threestooges]

I can imagine ways of making it even more inviting as time goes by.

I'm eager to hear.

[RickD]

It already looks great. I didn't know there was such a variety of naval lots available. I think I need to do some downloading. 

I actually like to see work in progress pictures. Now in times of extremely polished MDs it is a nice change. It will be interesting to see the area change.

[threestooges]

Replies:
Willy (Swordmaster):
Yeah, moving can be a pain; all that packing. You'll get an idea of where they're going to end up this next update though, as it takes shape. Scrapping the area and starting from scratch... well, at least stripping the buildings, is kind of fun.


Joan (Jmouse): Perhaps I'll have to sit in on a few of the Navy's planning meetings to see if there are any plans for the retired ships. Glad to hear you've enjoyed the update, and it's true, even if you think you get an area looking good, you get better at what you do, something new comes out that's even better than what there was, or you get a new idea to try, and you can be right back at it. Hats off to everyone who has been helping push this game forward. Good to hear from you again Joan.


Schulmanator:Thank you very much. It's just getting started, so I'll be interested to hear your thoughts as it progresses.

Raphael (RickD): Peg and BSC (via the SNM pack) have some great lots out there. What you saw at the old base was Peg. What you'll see in the new base will be largely BSC (with a ship from NDEX too). If you came looking for pictures without polish, you came to the right place, my friend. I'm impressed by the detail and polish that many people out there seem to be able to obtain, but I always wonder how they got it there. Glad to hear you like the presentation here.


You saw where the naval yard was, now let's go take a look where it's going to be while the planning commission sorts out the zoning plans for the island.

46.00


Point Atascocita: named for the spear of land that juts back in front of the white cliffs at the top of the picture, creating a quiet bay. This point is one of the naturally high points of land on the surrounding islands. It has historically provided an excellent line-of-sight waypoint for mariners. Now towering ships will also help orient travelers through the area.

46.01


Moving through, the navy wanted to connect the island off the point. Rather than a bridge, which would be expensive to upgrade should the need arise, and present a choke point to base maneuvers, they opted to engage in an expansive fill program.

46.02


A bit of dredging was done to ensure the new harbor would be deep enough to support the hulls of the ships it would soon be hosting.

46.03


Turning our view 180 degrees, looking out the entrance to the bay into the ocean, the dredging has been mostly completed and the shape of the bay is taking a more defined shape.

46.04


This base will continue on to the next map, and as you can see the dredging has allowed greater depth in that direction. Also, the entry to the harbor has been more defined, and a concrete breakwater will be implemented to maintain calm waters in the harbor.

46.05


Now then, some aesthetic work on the surrounding waters. This area has not been touched since the Greenacre was founded. It hadn't even been registered as a proper city before now. Some terrain work was needed. Now you can see how it's always been, instead of just how the lazy cartographers had mapped it.

46.06


Here are the results of the work. Bit of a change from how it started. For the better, I say.

46.07


Up for next time: additional naval development, or a look to see how the residential planning is going. Your call.
-Matt

[noahclem]

Love the redevelopment from the last update  Those white, vertical seawalls are perhaps my favorite and the little shown so far already looks great. The old naval area was very well done and I certainly look forward to seeing how the revamp will go. I do suggest the idea of reducing the transparency of your water. A more uniform look for water beyond the shorelines will give you a more realistic look I believe and I have a feeling your other goals for the area can still be realized after a transparency change. As for what next I could do either, but if pushed would vote for the naval base. Looking forward to the next one 

[Schulmanator]

I'd say the dredging was definitely needed; it looked a bit shallow. I am curious to see how the new configuration shapes up.