Greenacre

[art128]

Welcome to Page 13 of this magnificent MD !

Hi Matt,
I'm always impressed by your rural areas my friend. Your add of little lot, like on the top right corner and on the bottom is a terrific touch !
Also , That little pond looks excellent , and that reflection on the water give it a really nice touch !
Like Dustin said, your way to use these RRP flowers is just amazing my friend !

Take Care,
Can't wait the next update.

- Arthur.  

[Simpson]

Nice teaser Matt!! the lake is looking incredible. 
I'm looking forward to the next update my friend.

David

[dedgren]

Nice integration of Chris's (chrisadams3997) paths into the rest of the landscape, Matt.  You can always tell when someone takes time and care with something.


David

[Pat]

Matt that is wonderful update there sweet I truly enjoyed the cabins!!!

[threestooges]

Replies:
-Dustin (thundercrack83): Thanks Dustin. It's easier to make things look good when you have good looking things to begin with. I'm continually impressive with all the custom flora out there these days (the RRP, gizmo's flora, rocks, PW, TPW, etc). Hopefully one of these days I'll be able to pick up a trick or two from you on the urban building thing, but until then, glad to hear you like the rural/woodsy side of Greenacre.


-Joan (Jmouse): Coming from someone whose rural skills are quite accomplished (I've seen what you can do) I take that as a fine compliment. I may have already mentioned this, but the lot of the cabin is exactly the same as the one you sent me. Everything on it you see was added in-game. The base texture worked so well with the terrain mod too. You did an excellent job with the cabin and I'm looking forward to seeing what progress you have on the rest (the camp may need to expand if it continues to get this sort of reception).


-Battlecat: Thank you very much. The credit for the cabins should go entirely to Joan. She and the rest of the NUTs will hopefully have something pretty interesting in the works here soon. More is on its way.


-Arthur (art128): Thank you very much. The "reflection" is actually a lucky accident. It's the terrain mod showing through (I think I have a snow mod or something in there somewhere) and it worked out quite well. Hopefully you'll enjoy the rest of the camp as much as that little bit.


-David (Simpson): Glad you liked it. That pond is just the swimming hole actually, there's a lake up the hill though. We'll see that this update.


-David (dedgren): Thanks David, high praise indeed from you. It was actually Joan's cabins that got me to try it, and from there they jsut sort of spread. You're right that you can always tell when someone takes time and care with something; they call it 3RR. Hopefully updates will take less time in the future for me (though with no less care). Incidentally, I have what I need now, so I should have something for you soon. Always good to see you here.


-Pat: Glad you enjoyed it. Credit for the cabins goes to Joan, I just got to show them off.


It has been far too long since Greenacre has had a full proper update here. That is something that we'll change today. I'm happy to report that the renovations have been completed on the Sierra Camp facilities. You've seen the old general store and a bit of the view on the way up there. In addition to that road, a hiking trail was added for the more adventurous camper. The trail head is just off the parking lot of the general store, and it winds its way back up the hill. You can take the direct route (up a really steep hill) or the longer one which is less steep and goes through wildflower fields

This is the main area of the camp. As you can see, Sierra Camp was designed to offer its guests a fine array of outdoor amenities. It's not the typical camper's campsite. In addition to a main lodge, the camp also offers horseback riding, tennis, basketball, swimming, hiking, and that firepit/fire circle thing is a great place to roast marshmallows.

5.01


This is the site people see when they first enter the camp. Staffed by employees of the Greenacre Department of Forestry, the ranger station handles all the camp's administrative activities out of this little building here. From parking passes, to visitor info and trail maps, to being first responders when the occasional guest decides to ignore the trail map and gets lost, these people are there to make sure that everyone has a good time and things stay in good order.

5.02


Though the crushed gravel paths around the camp are certainly fit for autos, the only time you'll see one there is when people are loading or unloading. Otherwise, they may park in the main lot near the Essence Gyser. The lack of cars at each site helps with the "roughing it" feel and keeps the paths open for hiking and horses. The Essence Gyser (in the middle of the pic there) rivals Yellowstone's "Old Faithful" for regularity of eruptions. While you can set your watch to Old Faithful, at Sierra Camp: Time is... of the Essence.

5.03


Just past the Essence Gyser is the tack room for the corral (on the right with the stagecoach in front) and the main lodge (called the Cabin). The Cabin features, among other things, a meeting room for business retreats or indoor soccer and such (for the summer camps) as well as a restaurant and cafeteria run by Simio Foodservices. As I hear, it's a subsidiary of Monkey Around Productions (a major architecture and design firm). If the food is even half as good as their buildings, we should be in for a good meal here.

5.04


The view from the back is pretty nice. The trees open up and it has a view down to the city in the distance. For as far out in the woods as the park is, there is still some reminder here of civilization down the way. Facing to the west, the sunset dinners are a fine treat (if not potentially a bit bright). Perhaps we can swing back for that later. For now though, take a quick look and we can see the rest of the area.

5.05


Here's the swimming hole. I believe I've already shown you a picture here before (with those cabins on the left), but now that renovations are complete, take a look at the area.

5.06


Just a few more campsites up this way along with a few more cabins. Bearing in mind there is no vehicle traffic permitted here besides loading/unloading, being surrounded by those paths isn't so bad.

5.07


Before we lose the light here, I figured it'd be nice to take a hike. Hope you wore good shoes, we have much to see. We'll start off at the lake and work our way past the falls, down the hill to that wildflower field I showed you some time ago.

5.08


Hope you enjoyed that. Timing should be good enough to grab a seat for that sunset dinner. We'll head over to the firepit later. Until then, enjoy the meal. It's on me.

5.09


As I mentioned earlier, this firepit is a great place to roast marshmallows, and perhaps swap a few stories. If they build the fire particularly big, you might be able to make a nice s'more from the top row.

5.10


So that about wraps things up for now. Hope you enjoyed the new facilities. I've take the liberty of booking a cabin for you for the night. You'll have to let me know what you think. The Forestry Department is interested in getting some feedback. Until next time, have a good night.

5.11

[Ryan B.]

Wow . . . . . this is how I wish I could have made my state parks in Orleans County look.

Simply stunning, Matt!

[Pat]

Matt talk about going camping wow!!! You was right when you said it just flowed and you did a wonderful job here in this update Matt!!!

[JBSimio]

Stunning update, Matt!   

I've already told you that I spent a fair amount of time lurking here and that a comment or two was long overdue... after seeing your latest offerings I couldn't possibly stay silent any longer.  You did a great job capturing the feel of a camp environment.  All the main components are there and fit together very nicely.  I can hear all the usual campfire songs in my head even as I write this... and the s'mores are just as good as they've always been.  Your mosaic is by far my favorite image in this collection.  What with the creek and the redwoods, I'm honestly wondering if you didn't sneak up here to Sonoma County and wander around my house without stopping in to say hello.  (And you can definitely consider that an open invitation if you ever find yourself in the Bay area!)  This update literally made my day... so thank you!

JB

PS... I have it on pretty good authority that Simio Foodservices makes some great zucchini bread and their sausage and penne pasta also tends to be a big hit with all age groups. 

[bat]

That's a wonderful rural part of your region there! Beautiful!

[Battlecat]

Beautiful update!  That is a fantastic camping resort!  Love all the details you've presented in your update.  I particularly like how you've used normal roads, MTP trails and the Rural Renewal project trails together in some places.  It all looks great!

[homefryes]

Two words: simply stunning. Major, major attention to detail. I love it! I may have to see how I can incorporate some more detail into mine at some point. Very nice, Matt.

-- Don

[Jmouse]

Matt, the camp looks great – you've done a wonderful job of creating it. There are a lot of details here which make the entire complex look alive with the kind of activies visitors would expect to find.

The mosaic looks like it came out of a travel brochure, and the firepit is an unexpected surprise – wish I'd thought of it! 5.11 has to be the favorite, though. It captures the essence of a care-free vacation day coming to an end – muted laughter, water flowing nearby and maybe a few interesting sounds from the woods. I'm there - I'd love to see the inside of one of those cabins!

Later...
Joan

[Sciurus]

Oh, I didn't come there few weeks ago!! And it's still beautiful, nothing to reprochate, it's nearly perfect

Guillaume

[sebes]

Well - I had quite some catching up to do in your MD Matt. But it was worth every minute spend to do so. You have made a big achievement here, Greenacres is a gorgeous, and very well made island.
I especially like the concept of starting every (or most?) updates with a regional map showing where you will tour with this through the recent developments... Very unique, and very nice!

[art128]

The rest of the camp looks excellent Matt, the lots are nicely placed.
Looking forward to more,

Arthur. 

[threestooges]

Replies:
-Ryan (burgsabre87): Thank you very much, and I think you'll have the chance now. Hope that helped get things up and running. Looking forward to seeing what you do.


-Pat: Thanks Pat. I haven't done much on-the-dirt camping (though what I have done was fun) and I've done the cabin thing a couple times (quite nice), and I tried to give a full service site. Glad to hear you enjoyed it.


-Jon (JBSimio): Glad to hear I brought you out of hiding, heh heh. Coming from you, hearing that I got the camp feel down is a real compliment. I still can recall a few of those songs myself (actually I think we sang some at my undergrad Resident Advisor retreat a couple years ago). As for the s'mores, well, it almost goes without saying that they're always good. How do you take yours? I'll usually let mine ignite and use a bit of dark chocolate, but then it's hard to make a bad one. The mosaic was sort of a happy accident. I had started to take pics for the lake at the top for a mini mosaic, but I started to notice things lining up and just kept going. I have been up around the Sonoma area a few times before, though that was many years ago. I still remember the redwoods though, and the vineyards, and many places around the Bay Area. Not a bad part of the state to live in. I'm glad you enjoyed the update, and you're welcome.

As for Simio Foodservices, they must be doing something right, the sunset dinner has been at full capacity for the last week, and they're contemplating extending the patio for more seating.


-bat: Thanks. I think it turned out pretty well. Glad you enjoyed.


-Battlecat: Thank you very much. I think camping resort is the best way to describe the place indeed. Most of the trails you see (the ones with the fences) are actually by Darmok (of Anduin Valley Revisited fame) and they are a fine set. The MTP pieces are fun too. Getting it all to blend together posed some interesting challenges, but Chrisadams' RRP trails are quite versatile. That made things much easier. Glad you enjoyed it.


-Don (homefryes): Thank you very much Don. One trick I've learned for the detail thing (and you can this this amply demonstrated in Adara (by Battlecat), is to mix a few things together. If you take an area and cover it with a type of tree, it'll look good. If you brush a few patches of that tree around, along with another, similar type, and then hit some ground cover in places, it seems to really do the trick. It doesn't usually take much longer than sweeping the area with one type either. Then again, looking at Ashtabula, I think you're already way ahead in the realism department.


-Joan (Jmouse): Glad you enjoyed it. It's easy to make things look good when you have good stuff to begin with. I'd seen the firepit area a while back, but never had occaion to play with it. I've seen them in real life, and I thought it made a nice feature for the park. A good place to hold those outdoor business retreat seminar things... or make s'mores. 5.11 is an interesting pic. I don't know if you've noticed, but the falls turn off at night (must want to save on water or something) but I basically had to snap a pic just before the falls turned off and then one after the camp fires were lit and mix the two together. Glad to know it was worth the effort. As for the interior of the cabins, I hear it's quite nice. I know the contractor who built them, so I'm pretty sure I can get you in. Take it easy Joan.


-Guillaume (Sciurus): Good to see you again. Glad to hear you've enjoyed what's been happening. Nearly perfect eh? IF you have any thoughts to help improve it, I'm always willing to take advice. Hope you enjoy what's next.


-sebes: Welcome to Greenacre, and I'm glad you enjoyed catching up on things. I know I've missed the region map on an update here or there, but I do try to get one to mark out the important areas. I thnk it helps give things perspective considering how much I bounce around from update to update. Glad you enjoyed it, and I hope to see you around.


-Arthur (art128): Glad you enjoyed it Arthur. Today's update is something a bit different, but hopefully you'll enjoy it too.


Today we'll be heading to the site of the new Greenacre Government Center. The new facilities have been built and are now occupied, so I figured I'd show you around while the office is being moved. as you can see from the map, the new location is just down the hill.
6.01


Here's the area as it presently is. There is plenty of open space for expansion should needs warrant it, but until then they've made sure to leave a few trees. It is Greenacre after all.

6.02


The buildings here are the focal point of the Center. My office fortunately has a view, and it looks out over the Howard H. Fine Transportation Hub (see if you can guess where the name came from). I showed you the old trainstation from the previous embassy area during our trip around Greenacre, and here you can see they seem to have followed the design plans almost to a T.

6.03


Although they didn't want to leave their facilities in the old center at first, the Greenacre Supreme Court is quite happy with its new accommodations. The circular area in part houses the Court itself as well as the Justices' chambers. The smaller circular area houses the courts of appeal (yes, I know, more courts in a smaller space, but they seem to work well with it).

6.04


The Department of Foreign Affairs and Embassies are housed here. Though each of the present embassies in Greenacre will have a plot of land to call their own, right now they seem content to stick with a floor or so. It makes the foreign affairs department's job easier now that they can just go up the elevator for meetings instead of having to run across the island.

6.05


Chapman Park is named for one of the foreign dignitaries to Greenacre. He accomplished many great things including the introduction of international flights to Greenacre (and presumably will still have more to come). The structures here harken back to the colonial America days. As I've said before, we've been heavily influenced by them, being so close and all.

6.06


The area is also the source for a few cultural venues too. One such place is the amphitheatre in the park. During the summer months they have an evening show (sometimes acting, sometimes music, they'll even have the odd open mic night). When not in use it's open to anyone who wants to reserve it.

6.07


News coverage and politics seem to go hand in hand these days. As a result, there is plenty of coverage here. The BBSC actually decided it was worth the investment to open a studio here. Hopefully we won't give them too much to play with. Maybe we can get them to play some old Marx Brothers movies on their screen out front.

6.08


The other main cultural venue is the Greenacre Museum of History which has artifacts dating back to the founding of Greenacre, and things before. The museum houses an archaeology department and a library (of general topics) housing  upwards of 100,000 books and some several thousand pieces of multimedia material.

6.09


This is just the beginning of the area and designs are still in the works for expanding it. If you see anything you like, or don't see something you would like to see, or pretty much any feedback you have, let me know and I'll pass it along to the planning commission. Perhaps they'll consider adding it in. Until next time, take it easy.

[Sciurus]

It's excellent, and I was serious when I said it's nearly perfect, it's right!! But, because there's a but, I reproach you to do too big cliffs, and it's a shame, it vitiates your city

Guillaume

[rooker1]

Hey Matt,
Great update.
The name of the transportaiotn Hub sounds familiar to me, but where have I heard that name before.....
You have a very nice collection of custom content as well and perfectly placed I might add.
I would hate to do that avenue climb up the mountian.  Looks like a very steep and long drive.
Robin 

[Battlecat]

Another excellent looking area!  I really envy your skill with urban areas, I'm still running into a lot of frustration with making mine look as good.  Of all the buildings there, I think the Greenacre Museum of History is the most amazing product!  Love how it looks and how nicely you've blended it into the area.  I'm not sure what's in the surrounding area, but a mix of medium or high density commercial and residential would be appropriate in the area with all those services and the transportation junction there.  Looking forward to seeing what's coming next!.  

[Jmouse]

You're a man of many talents, Matt – you can jump from a campground to a "political camp" in the blink of an eye!

First of all, you chose an excellent location for the government center, as well as an excellent group of BATs. As always, your skill for "decorating" an area shows here, and I appreciate the abundance of trees.

The entire cultural complex is just lovely. The reflection pool is a great idea, and you've done a grand job on the park-like setting. There are plenty of details, and you have a knack for using asymmetrical balance successfully – not an easy accomplishment sometimes.

One thing I haven't seen in Greenacre – or, knowing me,  have failed to notice – is bus stops or some other visible means of mass transit. The Transportation Hub made me think of it, but I wonder how much the overall region depends on rail and/or on other means. Also I'd like to see more of that hill in the upper left corner of 6.02 with the avenue(s) perched on narrow ledges. 

Thoroughly enjoyable update this time...
Joan