[Girafe]

It's a really nice start indeed 

A promising MD 

[Tomas Neto]

Fantastic night shots, with many details!!! Awesome update again my friend!!!   

[io_bg]

Great second update! Love the second picture! Can't wait to see more

[art128]

Excellent update Noah! I liked every pictures in it, they're wonderfull. My favorite was the second one with the single house in the middle of this traffic networks, I have seen such a thing some times ago around where I live.

Take care,
-Arthur.

[noahclem]

Thank you all again for visiting!!!

Especially:

Arthur (art128) - Thank you so much! I've seen similar situations in RL as well. To be honest though, for that picture I zoned a 1x1 HD Res to get the sidewalk textures I wanted and then put an overhanging prop on the next tile to cover it with a med-wealth pedmall texture--obviously I was too slow    I do enjoy the look as-is though and haven't modified the area since...
io_bg - Glad you liked my transport hub, thanks for commenting 
Tomas Neto - Thank you so much for visiting and commenting again! I've been enjoying your work as well and have for a while    I think SimFox and his darknight mod got me addicted to night shots.
Girafe - Thank you so much! There's a spot in my region where a ski resort would fit well for a couple months per year.... And there's an infinite number of places in my region where your beautiful and upcoming trees would   I'm very flattered you enjoyed my MD!
Battlecat - Thank you very much! Those diagonal bridges are fun to play around with...until your city is already developed with bridges and tunnels   Glad you enjoyed and hope you stop back!
Nardo69 - I appreciate your comments, even more so for your reservation in making them    Although I can't provide a quality map or wide-angle zoom in this update I can assure you that such a thing is in the works. And as I try to build an ideal transport network and avoid making mistakes I somehow feel you would understand if I prefer to delay and produce a good product instead of rushing out a mediocre one 
Sciurus - Thank you so much! I'm very grateful to have praise from several of SC4D's best MDers like yourself.
Tarkus - That is the nicest thing anybody's ever said to me on this forum (and people have been pretty friendly in general  )  !  I hope you enjoy my progress--more to come very soon 

A quick teaser based on recent events....

Some pretty major construction and re-sloping as the city's central interchange begins to take shape....

2.90


And for those who are not quite as road-geekery inclined--I've done some new experiments with seawall-less parks and a new cathedral area.

2.91



I hope you enjoy     A real update should follow very shortly!

[dedgren]

Wow, Noah!  Just wow.

Everything Siilijoki flows so beautifully.  Your integration of wide curves of various kinds into a cityscape is done seamlessly- they look like they belong there from the get-go.


David

[RickD]

That looks like it will be a really cool interchange. I am very curious to see the finished product.

[mightygoose]

nice work, the interchange looks very well thought out, and the park is delightful.

[travismking]

that interchange looks like hell on earth to navigate, I love it

[Tomas Neto]

Wow..., great update!!! Very nice my friend!!! 

[cubby420]

I can't wait to see that interchange completed!

[art128]

That church and that interchange are interesting me....

-Arthur. 

[Jmouse]

This is shaping up to be a whopper of an interchange, Noah. Like some others have said, I'm more a fan of natural growth, but I enjoy seeing the development methods used by other players. No two games are the same, and no two players approach the game the same way. That's part of what keeps it interesting.

I can't imagine how you're going to tie all those loose ends together, so I'll be standing by to see how you "connect the dots!"

Joan

[Jayster]

Looks very nice! Keep up the great work, I'd love to see how that interchange looks once you've completed it! 

Jayster

[kwakelaar]

This is a very nice looking new MD with some really well taken pictures. Seems you have quite an eye for making those snapshots. There are a lot of details to see and you have obviously spent time on getting things "right". 

[canyonjumper]

Looks awesome Noah! Love the use of the cathedral, it looks perfect

             Your friend,
                            Jordan

[Sciurus]

Excellent work my friend!

Guillaume

[noahclem]

Siilijoki III - Maps 'n' Merry Christmas!


 (See-Lee-Yo-Kee) — hopefully it’s not a silly joke


Thank you again to everyone who has visited here and especially to those who have commented!


Replies:


dedgren – Thank you so much!! I love creating realistic transport networks, both in form and function!
RickD – Thank you, I look forward to showing the finished product!
mightygoose – Thanks, I had fun with the park (as you’ll see in this update) and am excited about my interchange’s potential.
travismking – Thanks, hopefully it shouldn’t be too tough—all right hand turns and no sharp corners.
Tomas Neto – Thanks for visiting Tomas, I’m glad you keep visiting and commenting!
cubby420 – Soon my friend, but I’ve included a progress report in this update.
art128 – Thanks Art, I’m glad you enjoyed the teaser!
Jmouse – The interchange will be big and I’ve created it in a manner that should be expandable. Both to more lanes and more exits. Nothing compared to Houston though, I’m sure   While my MD is certainly not "natural growth" in the strict sense, I've worked hard to at least make it "natural-looking growth". By central interchange I meant closest to the center, not directly in the middle of things. Because of the way Siilijoki has developed a large amount of inexpensive land was available to be purchased for the site of the new interchange and Siilijoki's growth & development plan specifies expansion to the southwest, will eventually make the new interchange more literally central.
Jayster – Thank you much, I’m looking forward to seeing the end product of the interchange myself!
kwakelaar –  Thanks, I’ve tried to be pretty attentive to detail in my creations. Whenever I start a city I intend for it to be “perfect”, though I certainly have a long way to go
canyonjumper – Glad you liked it, I’ve had a lot of fun with the cathedral neighborhood! It features prominently in this update in fact!
Sciurus – Thank you so much, I love your MD as well!


Back to the task at hand….

Things are changing rapidly in Siilijoki. Its economic resilience in spite of the recent worldwide recession, combined with the area’s demographic trends and New Bothnia’s stimulus policies have positioned the region for substantial growth. But before we move forward let’s take a look backward!

The last century has seen relatively few changes:  technologies adopted and fashion trends imitated. Remember to avoid mullets and glittery dragon T-shirts and you should be ahead of the game whether you live in your world or my imaginary one. The area’s demographics and economics have remained essentially the same however besides a gradual rise in income, education, and life expectancy.

Recently however, an influx of money and citizens has begun to change things. Being generally neither rich nor poor, putting in an honest day’s work creating tangible products was the norm in the past for the region. Competition from emerging economies has put increasing pressure on traditional enterprises such as the timber industry, paper, and manufacturing.

Siilijoki, as well as the rest of New Bothnia, has traditionally been a socially and politically liberal place with a significant social safety net and the taxes and subsidies that are part of the package. The recent rapid population growth, coupled with an aging population, has challenged the previous social status quo on multiple fronts however.


This update is intended to continue the process of introducing the neighborhoods, transport networks, and scenic sites of Siilijoki before I delve into more detailed storylines and specific projects. I intended to have something ready for publishing a few days earlier but just re-opened my restaurant for the winter tourist season up here in the near-arctic and have been a bit preoccupied. My pixel-by-pixel recreation of my city in GIMP to create a quality map has taken a bit more time than planned and possibly set me back a day or two   I’m very excited to finally put my MD into geographical context! The map that follows includes numbered references to the pictures included in this update.

3.1


Unfortunately my new interchange remains uncompleted. Hopefully now that I’ve finished my city map I’ll have time to complete it with appropriate eye-candy it in time for an update in the near future! In this picture the junction is completed besides a couple loose ends. I’d have tied up said loose ends by now but there are a few things I plan to tweak before it’s finalized that will require more work than the minor details that remain unfinished on its fringes.

3.2






And here is an assortment of recent pictures taken in Siilijoki:

3.3 - A different view of the cathedral from the previous teaser. I've fixated on this recently-developed part of town recently but churches should be appropriate for the time of year 



3.4 - A night view of Siilijoki's primary industrial district. The same location as the last pic from post #2



3.5 - Night shot of the city center, just south of the main railway station



3.6 - Trains and trams pass through the cathedral neighborhood



3.7 - A night-lit residential mosaic







3.8 - My current project areas in town. Please let me know which project(s) you'd like to see here next!



Thanks again for visiting! I plan on an in-depth tour, with analysis, of Siilijoki's motorway system for the next update. Your comments are always welcome!

3.9 - and finally...

[art128]

Wow, the interchange is growing fast ! I think some days i'll make an interchange like that. I really loved the night mosaic, with fireworks it could be even better ! And Merry Christmas !

Take care,
-Arthur.

[io_bg]

Another great update! Very nice map and night shots (3.5 is my favourite). I'd like to see the riverfront park for the next update
Merry Christmas to you, too!