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Hoo Ha's Parking Lots

Started by hooha47, August 08, 2009, 03:34:35 PM

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hooha47

I've been working on an add-on for my modular parking lots.  The original set allowed you to build square/rectangular lots in various configurations.  The add-on will allow you to build L-shaped lots, as well as a few other things.  Here are the lots I have so far:



1, 2 and 3 are new entrance lots.  Here are examples of how #1 can be used.



2 and 3 can be used in conjunction with 7 and 8, (and 4 and 9) as shown here:



and here:



4, 5 and 6 can be used to make L-shaped lots, like this:



5 and 6 can also be used in conjunction with the original T lot to do this:



10 and 11 are just a regular straight parking lots, 10 with shopping cart returns added and 11 with arrows for making your parking lots one way.  You can see each of them used above.

I'm also working on a couple more things for this add-on before it's ready for release.

Any suggestions and/or feedback are always welcome.
"If you want to have cities, you've got to build roads." - Cake


See all my lots on the STEX
And see my parking lot projects thread here and my mayor mode ploppables thread here

Andreas

One thing I don't like that much are the doubled lamp posts. But the shopping cart props are a great idea - will fit very well next to any supermarket. :)
Andreas

FrankU

I agree with Andreas.
Maybe you put just one lamppost on each lot? Or you can place them in such a way that the posts end up on exactly the same spot. Then it looks like there is just one lamppost with two lamps.

Beautiful work!  &apls

SimNation

Might I add a little eye candy suggestion? You should put shrubbery in the parking lots to give them that organic touch. Even some trees at the end sections where there are T intersections would make it look a lot more organic instead of the acres of cement parking lots that plague the world. You can take a look at how some people did there pure eye-candy parking lots if you do not know what I mean when I saw it would make it look more "organic".

SC4BOY

I like the lots as is.. its rare anywhere I go to find plantings in parking lots.. they don't make good partners.. I'd suggest if you want plants, use the BCS park trails or similar and weave them through separate lots instead.. even hardy trees do poorly in lots and require continued and expensive maintenance... perhaps in some fancy place, but would be very uncharacteristic of parking lots I see.. parking lots are usually aimed at getting the most cars into a given square footage given whatever safety considerations there may be.

Jack_wilds

Hello Hoo Ha, Jack wilds here...

I really like your lots, simple in design but so flexible, plenty of choices for differing locations...  :thumbsup:

I'd continue with your gray and darkish-gray black as separate sets along with  landscaping - no landscaping sets as well...
its a code-requirement that lots over X- amount of stalls and/or bounded by a main street here in the Fox Cities to include greenscaping -the code even dictates how much green-to-pavement ratios and placements in certain places...

the sets make for a good variety, to choose from and Sims like choices, after all there are more than one asphalt companies in Sim-land  ;D

From the Fox Valley,

Jack

hooha47

Thanks everyone for the feedback and compliments, it is very much appreciated.  Andreas and FrankU, I completely agree about the double lamp posts.  As you'll see below, I fixed them.  I used FrankU's suggestion and placed them so that they line up right on top of each other, looking like double posts.  SimNation, I had been thinking the same thing about adding shrubbery, but SC4BOY also has a point.  Where I live (Oregon) many of the parking lots have some shrubbery/trees, but a fair number are also pretty plain.

So, I've followed Jack_wilds excellent suggestion.  I'm going to release most of the lots I showed in my previous post, then I'm going to release a set of the same lots with shrubbery added as shown below.  The big grass areas with trees and flower are separate lots, which will probably be in a separate add-on pack.  I also made a pick-up/drop-off lane which you can see at the top of the parking lot.  I'm not sure if I like it or not.  So now I've got my work cut out for me.

Here's a sneak peek of what I've been working on:



And a close up:



I'll have more soon.
"If you want to have cities, you've got to build roads." - Cake


See all my lots on the STEX
And see my parking lot projects thread here and my mayor mode ploppables thread here

Gringamuyloca

hooha47

I am loving your latest rendition.   :thumbsup: :thumbsup: &apls

I am looking forward to implementing them!  ;D
Tamara

Andreas

Ah, yes, the lamp posts look much better now, and I also like the greenery. :) There are quite a few wrecked cars on the parking lots, though (the grey-ish one with the opened hood), maybe you should check the prop families and see if there's one without this prop (you can cycle through the contents of a prop family with pressing "N" several times after placing the family on the lot). Also, the small TE'd entries look a bit odd. Maybe you could leave out the TE here and pretend that those are supposed to be pedestrian/emergency exits only? But as I said, this is coming together really nicely.
Andreas

tahill79

Your new changes are very very good.  These parking lots will help me to lower the size of my plugins folder.  And any thing that does that is awesome.  Great job!!!  Cant wait for the release.

tamorr

   I wonder if anyone has ever made a diamond shape planter for trees, this is what I've seen often in some of the cities in central California. The Diamond shape planter with a single tree would be directly over some parking spaces making those compact spaces, for compact cars. They are usually spread out prettty far from each other so there are not too many compact spaces... A good example would be the Wal-mart parking lot in Turlock, CA.
   Look good regardless, and I am enjoying your parking lots you have made so far.... :)
  "It is wiser to think about your actions before doing them, but be warned One must act quickly before another takes action for you."
  "Knowledge may be Power, but it is how you use that Knowledge that makes One Powerful."
  "I am a Philosopher, Punnist, Poet, and Rambler so keep in mind I think ahead and backwards to point where communication is sometimes not completely understood, even if Enlish is my primary language, it doesn't mean I know it well N proper."
  "Always do your best to acheive your goals and Dreams one at a time."
"Patience is a virtue."

Jack_wilds

Hello Hoo Ha, Jack wilds...

I like the direction this taking... making add-on paks will allow for better customizing.  The drop-pick up zone is a good thought, and also be adapted to be used with the AC airports... 

Also I have a few thoughts concerning TE, can it be made to be used in an UDI vehicle -as in drive it park it... then to expand on it by park drive thru in a one way patterns...

then to add 'live parking behavior'  that these lots with parallel, angled spaces be used in downtown places and not cause 'no road connect' zots in front of the stores... well just thinking aloud about what is-can be possible, not to put more on the plate as what your doing is really good

from the Northwoods

Jack

hooha47

Once again, I appreciate all the feed back.  I've been redoing some textures, especially for the entrance lots, so they connect better to the street.  The following two pictures show how all the entrance lots look now that I've redone them for the original set.



And here they are for the as yet unreleased add-on set.



So I'm planning on releasing an update to the original sets, as well as the add-on set I showed earlier (with a few revisions).  Then I'm going to work on the set I showed earlier with the bushes, which can work with the other sets, or as a partial replacement.

I'm wondering if I should change the capacity of the lots.  Originally, all the functional lots (the entrance lots) had a capacity of 1,000.  I'm thinking of bumping it up to 1,500 or 2,000.  Only the entrance lots can be functional.  As far as I know, there is no way to make them functional if they aren't connected to a road (This is a partial answer to Jack wilds suggestion).

I hope to have the revised original set and the add on ready soon, and then I have several ideas for additional add ons. 
"If you want to have cities, you've got to build roads." - Cake


See all my lots on the STEX
And see my parking lot projects thread here and my mayor mode ploppables thread here

Sciurus

This is just beautiful, but one question: is it you who had done the textures? And if it's no, where did you find it? It can interest me $%Grinno$%

Guillaume :thumbsup:
L'atelier d'architecture
* * * * * Longwy * * * * *

hooha47

Sciurus, thank you.  The original textures are from WalkingSnake Textures Vol 01, available here: http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1181

Many of the textures I'm using now, including all the entrance lot textures from my previous post, I made, but they are based on the original WalkingSnake textures.  In fact, I wanted to make sure that it's OK to modify textures made by someone else and release them as my own.  I would certainly make it clear in the read me that my textures are based on the original WalkingSnake textures.

I was planning on just including the necessary textures with each individual release, instead of releasing a separate texture pack, but if you're interested in my textures, I'm sure I could find a way to get them to you. ;)
"If you want to have cities, you've got to build roads." - Cake


See all my lots on the STEX
And see my parking lot projects thread here and my mayor mode ploppables thread here

Sciurus

Ok, thank you, and if you could send me an e-mail with your textures? $%Grinno$% Of course, We'll answer its original creator ;)

Guillaume :thumbsup:
L'atelier d'architecture
* * * * * Longwy * * * * *

tr0ub1es0me


SimNation

Love that one up top that has the tree's and shrubbery with it. It will go nicely with your modular set that has no shrubs that I have

hooha47

#38
OK, the revised version of the original modular lots is available now in gray and in black.  Here are the lots:



   1. Straight Entrance
   2. T Right Entrance
   3. T Left Entrance
   4. 4 Way Entrance
   5. Left Corner Entrance
   6. Right Corner Entrance
   7. Straight
   8. End
   9. T
  10. Left Corner
  11. Right Corner

The first Add-On set is also available in gray and black.  Here are the lots in the add-on set:



   1. T Entrance
   2. 4 Way Entrance #2
   3. T Left Entrance #2
   4. T Right Entrance #2
   5. T #2
   6. 4 Way Thru
   7. Straight Shopping Carts
   8. T Barrier Left
   9. T Barrier Right
  10. Straight Arrows

The next add-on set will be the one shown earlier, with the shrubs.  The trees and flowers shown in that picture will be a separate add-on.

Sciurus, all the textures shown in this post are contained in the individual sets (except the ones from WalkingSnakes textures), so you can get any of those you want.  If there's something else you're interested in let me know.

Thanks again for all the feedback and support, it's very much appreciated.
"If you want to have cities, you've got to build roads." - Cake


See all my lots on the STEX
And see my parking lot projects thread here and my mayor mode ploppables thread here

FrankU

Hoo Ha,

I just downloaded your grey lots and I am going to use them. They look very versatile and I am happy that you provided them with the BSC arrows. Indeed very useful!

&apls