Greenacre

[threestooges]

Replies:
io_bg: Yeah, finding the right combination of free time, motivation/inspiration, and all of that is hard to put together some times, but I think things will be a bit more regular here soon.


cubby420: Happy to help.


Fred (mrbisonm): Thanks Fred. Coming from an MD veteran like you, it's good to know I've been able to return some inspiration. I'm by no means a master in this either, but you're more than welcome to steal a few ideas (as long as you don't mind me stealing a few back). Looking forward to seeing how the airport comes together for you.


Noah (noahclem):Glad to hear things are moving forward. Progress, no matter how small, is still progress. It took me a while to finally pull the trigger on construction too. Take your time and plan it out beforehand, and leave a bit more space than you think you need, it manages to fill in fast. Let me know when you do break ground on it.


This update takes us to look at some new (re)development up in the hills.

30.00


Industrial development to be precise:

30.01


One of the first buildings that grew up here was a Costco distribution warehouse.

30.02


However, such a facility really needs a place for people to park:

30.03


A little further to the west there's plenty of land available for new buildings to go in.

30.04


Filing out the proper papers at city hall, the area is zoned, and ready for development. Not all of these buildings will survive to the final product though.

30.05


A little pruning, some additional development, and a few parking lots to make sure the curbs aren't packed full gives us this:

30.06


Following the development further west still, we start to get closer to an existing commercial zone. Marking the transition, developed properties take the form of warehouses, manufacturing structures and other, less polluting structures.

30.07


Following in line with the need for plenty of parking, parking lots fill the spaces between the buildings.

30.08


But, given that this is Greenacre, and that this is a lower density industrial park, some of those lots have been re-converted to trees.

30.09


So that's the progress for this update. In the coming updates we'll follow the progress further to the west and south to see how this part will tie into the rest of the area. Until next time, take it easy.
-Matt

[Jmouse]

Greenacre certainly is filling out - and looking good! Glad to see you've provided parking areas - the lack of them always looks unnatural to me. 30.06 does, indeed, show the industrial area is progressing nicely and 30.07 appears to be the result of natural development. Then the addition of trees adds a bit of softness and confirms my idea that commercial/industrial development doesn't have to be an eyesore!

I like the realistic, logical, down-to-earth approach you've used here. Good work...
Joan

[kwakelaar]

Always nice to see someone making a 'good looking' or maybe rather realistic industrial park. Yours is a great example of using the space around the developed buildings to make something that is looking coherent in style. Using the same kind of trees and parking spaces is tying the whole area together.

[Tomas Neto]

Very nice update my friend!!! Nice industrial area!!!

[Sciurus]

Oh, it's been a long time I didn't come there!
Very nice update and very realistic. I like that you show how you build or rebuild some zones, it's very interesting.

Guillaume

[bat]

Great work on that industrial area!
Looking forward to more from Greenacre.

[RickD]

The industrial area looks great. I like the rail going through it. I find it not easy to fill irregular shaped areas with industry as most buildings are large and do not fit into diagonal areas.

[threestooges]

Replies:

Joan (Jmouse):
I think, if there was one thing I've picked up from other authors in regard to industrial areas, it was parking. Maxis made some great buildings, and there are some great custom ones out there, but parking is one of those things that can always make the areas seem more realistic. Glad to hear you like the new presentation/development style.


kwakelaar: That means quite a bit coming from you. Andau is probably one of the most realistically developed MDs I've seen. Glad to know the area flows as a whole. I'm making this stuff up as I go, so it's always good to know what works, or doesn't.


Tomas Neto: Glad to hear you enjoyed it.


Guillaume (Sciurus): Good to see you here again. I'll be showing more of the progressive development and redevelopment as I go. Glad to hear you like the presentation style.


bat: Thanks! There will be more development on the way.


Rick (RickD): Those angled/irregular areas are some of the toughest to work with. It can be dealt with with a bit of green space or custom lots, but generally I've found it tough to work buildings up to the edge of such lots. If you have any thoughts on the matter, I'd love to hear them, but until then, I'll keep an eye on Santa Barbara for hints.


Those of you who do keep up on your Greenacre news might remember a story which broke way back when in November of 2009. I've obtained a transcript from that broadcast in case you missed it:

Robin: "The SS Central Gremable has been found!
What does this mean to the rest of the world you ask?  Andrew Patterson, a university historian says this find gives us the chance to rewrite what very well might be incorrect history.

Andrew Patterson (on location at Cliffton University): The SS Central Gremable was built just to transfer the gold from the Greenacre islands to the SC4 Mainland World Banks.  On it's maiden voyage on May 27, 1838 the ship came under attack by Sam Blacksmith, called himself the last Great Pirate.  There was a chase through the tight corridors of the islands passes, but Sam Blacksmith finally sunk the Gremable.  But what was unknown to this day was whether or not Sam had taken the gold or if it had gone down with the Gremable.
Now, the 1850s marked an extraordinary growth period for Greenacre.  After the discovery of gold at Buttin's Mill, "49ers" came from all over the SC4 world to strike it rich in the gold fields of Greenacre.  On March 21, 1837, the Greenacre Chronicle reported to the SC4 world that "gold has been found in considerable quantities."  It could be argued that this was the greatest news scoop in SC4 world history.
The soaring SC4 world economy, fueled by the rapid influxes of fresh real money from the Greenacre gold fields, set the stage for the most powerful industrialized nation in the SC4 world to develop. This was the decade when all the islands transformed into one government per se.  Gold was more than an economic boost to the country.  It was the catalyst that caused great numbers of Europeans, Chinese and South Americans to prosper in a region that just years earlier was sparsely populated.  The Greenacre Gold Rush relics are symbolic of the SC4 world dream.

Robin: Captain Steve Trusher's salvage team will be the ones bringing up the gold and Channel 3 will be there to keep you all up to speed"

Well, following up on that, the historians around here might find this intriguing:



Yes, that's right. No treasure recovered. I'm not sure if that's true, but I have a feeling there will be treasure hunters out in the bay there for years to come. One thing's for sure, the salvage site is employing a fair few folks.

31.01


Also, as you can see, the progress is moving along quite well. The majority of the ship has been documented, packed and shipped, leaving only the frame to go.

31.02


Oddly enough, the area sees quite a bit of nautical traffic, so it's a bit strange to think that ships passed over the salvage site so often over the years without any thought to what lay underneath.

31.03


The ship itself, once it has undergone study and analysis, will form the central display for the lobby of the IOS as the earliest known example of oceanic navigation in Greenacre.

31.04


Bit of a short one, but this update's been a long time in coming. Hopefully it felt like a full one and not just a teaser.
-Matt

[rooker1]

 
Great work Matt. 
The transcript was a good reminder, I had almost forgotten about that.  The two dates are of interest to me....May 27th and March 21st.  My birthday and my eldest son's
The bit of history and the news paper article are all very well done and definately add to the realism.  And nice LOT you made on the shore.  I look forward to hearing if anyone finds that gold.

Robin 

[RickD]

The salvage site is very well done. Great detailing.
31.03: Looks like a lighthouse or some buoys are needed for safety. 

[bat]

Nice news paper there!
And great pictures of ship!

[Jmouse]

The salvage site is, indeed, a well-planned area with lots of interesting details. In 31.01, the ground cover mid-left looks great, and Chris' four-wheeler ruts are very appropriate there. But I guess you knew I would question a lack of visible access. Somebody has to keep you on your toes, and your day will come!

I'm glad you included the long shot in 31.03. It really adds a bit more depth by giving us a feeling for the overall atmosphere. Here we have the jungle and the deep-blue sea surrounding an historic ship. Did its secret go down with it, destined to be lost forever, or will further study reveal more pieces to the puzzle?

Good job on this one...
-Joan

[threestooges]

Robin (rooker1): It had been so long I'd almost forgotten about it too (kidding). I was wondering where you came up with those facts and figures. Now if only we could figure out what "Gremable" means then nautical historians across Greenacre would cheer. Many thanks to Joan who helped put the paper together (and in no small part helped provide inspiration for the article). You'll know if anyone finds the gold all right. Stories like that tend to not go unnoticed. Glad to hear you enjoyed the lot too. I don't fiddle with the LE much (Maxis, or the PIM-X one). Both versions scare me. However, with a bit of work, a decent lot seems to be possible for me. I think I'll stick to BATting in the short term though. Always good to hear... read your thoughts here. Hope all is well with you.


Rick (RickD): A lighthouse you say? Interesting. Well, given the cluster of islands and the shallow, narrow passages between them, perhaps a few channel markers might be in order. Glad you liked the site. The ship was "borrowed" from the viking ship park from mrbisonm found at Simtropolis.


bat: Glad you enjoyed it bat. Always good to see you here in Greenacre.


Joan (Jmouse): Oh, I'd say I'm kept on my toes by several folks around here, you included, heh heh. Though not nearly as much as is probably good, given the amount of dust I keep letting pile up in here. Glad you liked the site and the obligatory trail leading up to it. Time may well tell what happened to the treasure, or maybe it was found by the Greenacre government and is now being used to fund a series of civic renovations. Who knows? Thanks for your help in getting the newspaper done. That was a great help.


*dusts the place off again*

So, first I should apologize for the lack of regular updates.

Yes, I suppose once every month or two still counts as "regular" but I really would prefer that they be more frequent.

Anyway, I've been retooling an area on the south coast of Greenacre that's been seen before. The idea is to have it end up being a fancy-pants mansion-filled area overlooking the sea. The main road through town is elevated and shielded by trees to prevent road noise from bleeding through, and the slope of the hill helps each house have a view over the one below it.

Or at least that's the idea. Try as I might, I haven't been able to get things to a point where I'd like to see them. Something about the area isn't adding up.

With that, I'd like to ask for your thoughts.

South Coast was first seen back here during that first run in OSITM. It was a brief glimpse, and I still like the look of the tightly-packed mansions vying with small-scale apartments for that precious land close to the beach.

This is where the area was when I started:

32.01


You'll note the sparse hill, which is scheduled to be filled with a tropical-ish forest similar to Shelter Island shown back there. The industrial area is also slated to be upgraded, but that's a project for another time, I think.

32.02


This second picture shows more of the hill (with red cedars that are on their way out), as well as a superfluous baseball field (already gone) and a church which feels a bit out of place for the more contemporary style of architecture I'm looking for here. This area was built back when I was still getting going with custom content, and that church was, as far as I recall, the only custom one I had at that point (consequently it got used many times around Greenacre).

32.03


Here's the first image of the remodel in progress. I've obtained several mansions, sure... but it's lacking that lush look I was hoping for. Not quite sure why. Also, I'm looking for a better way to blend the flora types together. The tropical-ish jungle isn't quite coming together as expected. Maybe getting rid of those paths between the houses would work.

32.04


Lastly, and I know Robin will love this one, some mixed use areas including some industrial on the edge of the beach. That abrupt ending is going to be dealt with sure enough, but this is just to give you an idea of how the rest of the area is developing.

Thoughts about how best to proceed in development would be greatly appreciated, as would any comment naturally, it's always good to hear what you all think.
-Matt

[Jmouse]

That's a really nice beach you have there in 32.01, Matt, and I like the elevated road through town. If you have your eye on mansions, though, there will have to be a few changes made.

You've already mentioned upgrading the industrial area, and the garbage dump will have to go, too. I believe there's a mod somewhere which allows you to delete the dump without having to wait for it to disappear naturally.

There are things you can add to attract higher-class Sims, too. Get rid of the grid and replace it with curvy streets and quiet cul-de-sacs. Larger lots (yards) are appealing, so if you're just starting out here, consider leaving a vacant lot or two between each house and fill it with shady trees. Later you can zone larger lots.

Of course, there are always the basics like education, safety (police and fire protection), recreational areas (parks) and easy (easier) access to the workplace. Short of plopping EVERYthing, you just have to work your way up to the point where you want to be.

You can achieve your goal here, though, with some foresighted planning...

-Joan

[threestooges]

Thanks for the thoughts Joan. I think I have the demand and desirability aspects working well for the moment (though I can say that garbage dump is on its way out for sure), what I'm debating more is the visual style. As it stands, there are two paths I'm considering: a spread out are with mansions carved out of the jungle is one way to proceed, but I've had areas that have gone that way already; the other avenue is to have dense, yet high wealth development, as people crowd the shores to get into a desirable area. Some mansions, but also higher wealth towers: a beach town where property values skyrocketed. That's more of the question I'm pondering. What elements would best convey that look and feel?

[rooker1]

 I didn't answer right away like I usually do because I wanted to give myself some time to collect my thoughts on this little area of yours. 

So........
I hate (I know, strong word) when people over use the stone walls in thier cities and I think you may have over done it here.  A little pet peeve of mine.  I think it might have been a lot nicer if you had of followed the hill side and used the natural elevation for better views of the water for the houses and just cut in a two lane RHW with side roads off of it.  Leave maybe a tile or two of space between the highway and the backs of the houses for a nice stone wall.....say jeronij's, and some really nice trees.....say girafe's and Simfox's. 
Also I think I might have put the commercial on the main street going down to the beach and fill the water front road with houses instead.  Maybe change the residential street to a road and make the water front road a street that follows the water front.  On the west side it might go under the bridge, through a tunnel to have easy access to the industrial area just to the north and on the east side it would stil go through the industrials there and go back up to the highway.  This way you would easy flowing through traffic.
Last but not the least I think I would invest in a beach modd to give you real beach sand shores and than decorate them with grasses, trees and rocks.....similiar the way Yan does in Corsica, where you don't want beaches and where you do plop beach stuff.
As for the garbage dump, I would be inclined to leave it there.  It is in the industrial area and furthest from town being on the north side.  You know me by now, I have to mix bueaty with some uglyness and I think this would be just perfect.

I think the issue I have is the overall shape.  It looks to unrealistic with so much stone walls, the beach front looks like it belongs in a major city, Miami maybe.....a little too perfect for a small town.  31 parking lots, enough for 310 cars, I think it's too much.  That line of palm tree lots, way too perfect.  I know you don't like LE, but making some simple lots there would make the world of difference.  If you don't want to do it, tell me the lengths you are interested in and I will make them for you.

Okay, okay, not my MD so I should stop now.  I hope that wasn't too hard and you'll still talk to me.

Always a pleasure to come to your MD Matt and see what you are up to.  I look forward to seeing what you think about waht I have siad here and what direction you decide to go in now after hearing from Joan and I and anyone else that chimes in.

Robin 

[bat]

That's a nice small city with a great looking beach!
Looking forward to more...

[Sciurus]

This beach! I think it egals the Normand ones... how big they are!
Well, it's a nice city you've done, I like it. Maybe the surelevated road is not appropriate, I saw better a road on the ground with houses close to it.

Guillaume

[threestooges]

Joan (Jmouse): There wasn't much foresight in this update, but I think it turned out pretty well. Let me know what you think. I think the density of the area is coming together, at least on the beach side of the main road.


Robin (rooker1): Thanks for the thoughts; they're always greatly appreciated. I think you'll like this update, in part, and loathe it in part. You were right about the walls. The concept I had didn't mesh with the means I tried to use to get there. The walls have been removed and replaced with a more natural look, providing the noise barrier I was looking for, without the contrasting flora and stark bareness of the walls.

The main reason I chose to plop the beaches as lots was for the uniform and manufactured look of them (I know, sounds odd, right?). I like the contrast from the natural shores and it allows better versatility. As for the parking spaces, that too derives from a local memory:



Huntington Beach, CA and many other beaches in Southern California are focal points for more than just the locals. People come from upwards of an hour away to reach the shore. This necessitates ample capacity on a given day. Now, granted, there aren't nearly as many people living near the area here (for now), but it's meant to serve more than just this community.

I like the idea of the tunnel linking the industrial area. I'll have to work on it when I get working up that way next.


bat:Glad you enjoyed it bat. Always good to see you here.


Guillaume (Sciurus): Not too familiar with the Normand beaches, unfortunately, but I'd like to see them at some point. Glad you like the way these turned out though. I wanted to keep the main road through town elevated since it is meant to be more of a thoroughfare than a part of the town; more of a smaller highway than a city street. That's also why there aren't any houses near it. Hope you enjoy the renovation of the area.


If you remember from the last update, the South Coast area wasn't living up to my expectations. It wasn't dense enough, the buildings weren't close enough together, and the floral theme was practically non-existent (that's the change that Robin'll love)

33.01


Now then, as is true around southern CA, palm trees blend well with oaks, pines, and anything really. I tried to carry this look from just flora areas into the lots themselves.

33.02


The floral theme carries through to the school ground as well, hopefully tying things together better.

33.03


Now then, as far as the beach goes, it now transitions to the regular, unrefined shoreline, in a much more realistic and less-abrupt fashion.

33.04


Redevelopment of the commercial areas along the roads leading to the beaches allows for more visual diversity, and plenty of business opportunity for the shop owners from everyone going to the beach (and those coming off the beach for a bite to eat).

33.05


All in all, with the beach-front mansions (tightly packed to maximize beachfront space), the regular arrival of beachgoers, and the streetcar system to move people up and down the beach, it all seems to flow fairly smoothly.

33.06


So much so that the party will continue even into the sunset.

33.07


Now then, that raises the question of what happens at night when the residents are planning to go to bed and all the visitors are heading home. Well, that's what the walls and the trees were originally for, but the new flora seems to block the noise quite well. The road has also been turned into a divided road, allowing higher speeds and providing more of a buffer to avoid people drifting into oncoming traffic.

33.08


So that's where the area sits now. Certainly closer to what I'd originally intended. Still more work to come on the other areas surrounding it. So I'll leave you today with an overview of the area so you can see how it all now (hopefully) fits together better.

33.09


As always, any thoughts or suggestions are always welcome.
-Matt

[bat]

Again wonderful work on that beach!!