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Holt: One Year Later

Started by sim_link, July 27, 2012, 06:44:42 PM

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sim_link



Welcome Back! Industrial Revolution of sorts ahead.
But first, an important announcement...



THANK YOU!



4 websites, 6 publications, 100 000 views.
This is a HUGE milestone, so thank you for continuing to support and follow Holt!
It's much appreciated. :)


Now on to regularly scheduled programming...



At one time, there was zero industrial development in Holt. Even when industrial development began to arrive, Dofino was long a hold-out.
It was one of the last non-waterfront communities in Holt to permit industrial developments like this one.






Now, though, it sprawls through the area much like houses and condos.






There isn't much heavy industry, largely clean industries save for the occasional factory.
Most are clean manufacturing and tech-industry related. Pharmaceuticals, as well.






Shipping & distribution is also very common, as the number of warehouses shows.






In some places, the layout of the industrial park is very neat and organized, much like mid-density residential sprawl in the area.






Now it's night time. Far fewer lights still on compared to the offices we toured last update.
Still a charming look, though.







FrankU
Thanks for the reply!
This area actually did take a lot of time and error (thanks CTDs!  $%Grinno$%) - and also partially because I didn't like how it was turning out.
I was hesitant up until the very end with this area. Glad others like it. :)

APSMS
That's the sort of feel I was going for, large office park spaced out. It makes for a nice transition from "intensification zone" to existing, low-rise developments.

vortex
Hehe, thanks! It was nice to do a sort of Holt-signature update as a return from a long break. :)

SimCity V6
I have a few of those around, however many have been gobbled up by sprawl and so forth. We'll be taking a look at Manatee's downtown in the next few updates, that may peak your interest. :)

romualdillo
Thank You! Toronto's skyline is much more dense than this for sure, and constantly changing with a barrage of condos.  :D
If that's your sort of thing, you'll like where Sherkston is heading soon... ;)



Thanks For Visiting!




Join Simopsis today!

City Planner

That industrial park looks real good

sim_link



IT'S THAT TIME!
So, after about a month or 2, I'm finally back again. For a bit.. maybe longer? Who knows. :P Either way, today after being a month late I'm happy to present Holt's anniversary update! It has been over 2 years since I began publishing Holt back at the end of July, 2012. A lot has changed since then, in both the region and in terms of the journal itself. It is now published on 4 sites across 6 versions surpassing 1000 comments and 100 000 views. And it's not going anywhere yet. :)

I figured that since I always seem to have less time on my hands, one of the reasons for changes to Holt this past year, I would reshape census updates to occur annually instrad of quarterly. And I figured, what better time to do them, than at the anniversary updates? It's a great way to recap what has been each year of this journal's life. So from here on, census updates will be the anniversary updates. So, enough talking, let's get on with it!


HOLT: THIS YEAR'S RECAP
+ WHAT'S AHEAD

Today's update covers the period from the end of July 2013 to end of July 2014. Note that since the last census figured were gathered in June 2013 that this year's span is a little bit longer than would be normally. From here on census updates should be published in/around July 27 of each year.

My my, what a year it has been! It's hard to believe it has been over a year since the last census here in Holt. Things have certainly changed, as you will get a picture for below. It has been a year filled with building both up and out throughout the region, with Sherkston and Manatee growing taller, and Dofino and the like growing outward at a great clip. Growth has not slowed down here in Holt through now, and the order of most populous municipalities continues to rapidly change. There's been lots developed, Highway 40 is being widened to 6 lanes, the LRT system continues to expand, and the entire road network is as well as the region sprawls out.

Some interesting projects I have started to take on this year (2014-2015) include replacing the planted trees in Holt with season trees that are more realistic in appearance. This is a big job, particularly along the shoreline. Should be a fun challenge. :) As you will see later in the region view, I also abandoned the Kuhan CBD project. I didn't like where it was going, so it is being replace with what else, but sprawlburbs! And some other interesting development. I know this goes against my general rule of I show it off, it`s here to stay, but you know the saying... rules are meant to be broken. ;) Other than that, expect some more awesome new developments in the year ahead!

HOLT 2014 CENSUS
The moment you have been waiting for! This is the actual census portion of the update. Let's get into it.


As previously mentioned, this has been a busy year in Holt. Holt's population continues to soar, increase by about 1 000 000 since last year!







In a rapidly changing landscape, Sherkston holds on to the top spot in the population podium. But second and third place are certainly catching up.
Growth has been fuelled by ongoing intensification zone developments.






Kuhan's population soared this past year, as development continues to sprawl through it at a rapid pace. Residential and industrial development are sprawling faster than developers can cope. The town has had its humble 3000 population from the days of 2012 skyrocket to closing in on 500 000, a number it could easily exceed in the coming year.






Flynn was leapfrogged over this year by Kuhan, dropping Flynn to third in the population podium. However, its growth too has been stellar, more than doubling from the previous year. Flynn, like Kuhan, is experiencing rapid sprawl as you will see from the regional view. And it is only getting faster these days. It too is expected to pop-over 500 000 in population in the next year.






Dofino's close proximity to Kuhan, Flynn and Sherkston are propelling it forward. Industrial development has taken hold, a second highway exit was added on highway 40 in the north section of town and more development in the residential sector has propelled Dofino this year. Dofino essentially doubled in size, closing in on 300 000, leading to overtake Manatee in population.






Manatee was once the second most populous city in the region, but has dropped to 5th recently. However, development here too has been accellerating. It could be the first of the core municipalities to be built out, something that could occur this upcoming year. Time will tell.






Joining the six-digit club this year is Shorecoast, who experienced extremely modest growth compared to the rest of the region. Shorecoast is looking at ways to maximize development of land it has left on the coast, while not alienating tourists and existing residents. Expect modest growth again this upcoming year.





Norecount continues to plug away! Its main highway 40 interchange was completely rebuilt, while the highway 40/23 interchange is currently undergoing a complete rebuild. Southward, highway 40 will become a divided 6 lane highway, instead of the super-2 it is currently. That, plus a large planned industrial park and expanded LRT service could greatly increase growth in the town this year.






Midport experience the mildest growth of any municipality this past year, increasing in size only 1.2%. The growth was attributed solely to some new condominiums developed in the town.
Planners are finalizing a waterfront master-plan for the community, one that could see a mixture of new development, waterfront parks and trails and more. This is something that could start coming to light this upcoming year, though it could get mired in red tape. Time will tell!






Old Port is finally starting to see accelerated growth, increasing in size a whopping 57.9% this past year. It too could see increased waterfront development this upcoming year, as this picture shows the breadth of waterfront land left... but time will tell: Was this year a fluke for Old Port?





As you can see, it has been a busy year in Holt! It's extremely fast-paced development continued, and probably won't let up this upcoming year.



HOLT REGION VIEWS
This is always a fun part. Below are the region view for the past 3 years here in Holt. Oldest to newest, you can see the progress each year. This past year's changes have been huge, as you could imagine from the above numbers.

July/August 2012




June/July 2013






JULY/AUGUST 2014 (CURRENT REGION VIEW)




"SATELLITE VIEW" TEST. July/August 2014 (Current)
This one's for fun. :)






And that wraps up this year's Holt Anniversary update and Annual Census, 2014 Edition! I hope you'll continue to follow Holt to its third birthday, and stay tuned for another exciting recap of the year that was (or, for now, that will be. ;)) It'll be a fun one, that's for sure! So thanks again, everyone, for sticking with Holt through lulls in activity and the like through the 2 years it has been so far. I'm excited for the next year, and I hope you are too!




Replies to previous update(s) and this will be done together. Thanks again for the support!


jmsepe

Nice update and congratulations on your second year anniversary. Nice satellite view, where did you get that? :)
Just wandering around like a teddy bear running around the garden. :P

"The greatest things in life are those that we have deemed unexpected yet are worth it."  - Anonymous

Themistokles

Seeing this MD for the first time is a real pleasure! The way you combine aesthetics and functionality (that's not easy with all of the good-looking eye-candy around nowadays!) is really good! I especially like the industrial park and the suburban feel. :thumbsup: I'll definitely follow this MD closer!
Come join me on a hike to St Edmea!

Latest update: 7

"In the end, our society will be defined not only by what we create, but by what we refuse to destroy." - John Sawhill

Dantes

Impressive growth! Very many new residents! I hope it will give but also agriculture and forests! Your development is great!

vortext

Congratulations with another amazing year! Onward to the next!  %BUd%  :thumbsup:
time flies like a bird
fruit flies like a banana

sim_link



HOLT READERSHIP SURVEY
Sorry, folks, not an update today. I have a few in the works, but some annoying kinks in SC4 combined with the slowness of some city tiles has slowed those down a bit. Anyways, I've been thinking about some potential changes to the way Holt is served up for a while now, since around the time it was announced that Holt would be eliminating formal storylines from updates and the current update format was adopted. In the "change" announcement I made mention to some potential future changes, but to not worry as they were a while out. That is true, it has been a while. So I thought I would reach out to you, those who follow Holt, to try and get a feel for some possible ideas and changes in the way Holt is presented.  Holt is now published on 4 sites, encompassing 6 publications. This is a whole heck of a lot of work on my end. So I have been looking for ways to lighten the load when updating, so to speak, when I publish updates. I have been looking at ways to try and either keep all 6 publications going in some form, cut certain publications or launch new ways of doing updates. Based on the feedback I receive from all sites in general, it'll somewhat guide me in the decision making of where to go. Note that a potential outcome is the status quo, and that nothing really changes in terms of the number of publications and so on.

Below, I list out several hypothetical/potential ways Holt could change. Your comments on what you like best about each, or which one you like the most and so on is greatly appreciated. If you like a combination of several of the scenarios below, please feel free to let my know. All feedback is appreciated. These changes, even when I get a sense for where I'll be going, won't be instant. They may happen this fall, or they could happen next summer. It all depends. So, let's get on. :)


SCENARIO #1:
How likely would you be to continue reading and/or commenting if Holt ceased publication on your SimCity fansite of choice? Would you continue to follow it on another site?

Explanation: This one is semi-self explanatory. Certain Holt publications (likely 1-3) would be cut, while others are maintained. None would be deleted, those chosen for publication ending would no longer be updated. There would, of course, be the potential for it to one day begin publication again.

SCENARIO #2:
How likely are you to continue reading and/or commenting on Holt is full updates were no longer published on your SimCity fansite of choice, but instead teaser images linking to another publication of Holt. This being either on another SimCity community, or a new Holt website?

Explanation: Certain publications would likely receive a short description on the full update along with one of the images from the update, and it would in turn be directed towards the full update on another site. Replies on these versions would be done on a rolling basis (ie. monthly) and teasers (1-2 image updates) would be published in full on these sites. Large updates are what would be reduced.

SCENARIO #3:
How likely would you be to continue reading/commenting on Holt if updates were moved to its dedicated site, with update teasers posted on the current publication on your community of choice? If no teasers were posted? [Would you consistently check the new Holt website for updates and/or follow @HoltDistrict for information on new updates?]

Explanation: This combined potentially either scenario 1 or scenario 2 for some publications, while others would maintain full updates. The big change is full updates (and more) would be published on an all-new Holt website. This would likely be powered by WordPress, and would have the ability for comments to each update, similar to the ST CJ Blog Section and SMP Player Albums Section. This option would also mean I would begin using Twitter more again to promote updates on this new site and so on. It isn't likely all versions would be cut, but more likely 2-3 options would receive the treatment in option 1-2, or even 4.

SCENARIO #4:
What would your thoughts be if Holt on your favourite SimCity community was not regularly updates like other publications, but instead received "combined" updates on a semi-regular basis (ie every 1-3 months, all updates from those months would be combined into one huge update)?

Explanation: In this scenario, certain publications would receive updates on a semi-monthly basis, or perhaps based on a number of updates basis, whichever at any point in time results in a "fair" amount of updates. For example, if over 2 months 5 updates each with 5 pictures are posted, after 2 months these versions would receive all 25 pictures in one go, with the potential for a couple of bonus pictures to make up for the delay in posting. This option has the potential to be combined with scenario #3, in that a new site with updates is launched with several publications going to the format described here.



Whew! I know that's a lot, and I'm sure I have been rambling a bit. So, if you have any questions on the above, do not hesitate to ask! I have in mind already which route I'd prefer to go, but I am interested in seeing what others are thinking to see if that means a possible change in plans. This, combined with a planned format change to updates could make for huge change in how Holt is published, the biggest since it was published really. Again, as mentioned earlier there are no plans to immediately put any of these ideas into action, though it could happen sooner rather than later, or not. Once I have an idea of where things will be going, I will at that point make an announcement in each Holt publication on what those plans are, and how/if it will change that specific publication.


I want to thank all of you for being awesome supportive over the past 2+ years, and I look forward to many more! Change can be scary, but working this out with everyone will hopefully make it less so for both you and I! :P


I look forward to reading your thoughts,
-simlink

APSMS

Interesting options. May I take a fifth, or simply provide you with what I would prefer/will probably do no matter what changes you implement?

I don't use Twitter, so that option is out (these are all for me).

I don't follow ST CJ forums (only the CJ section), so that is out.

I would really like it if you posted teasers on the discontinued sites, if only to redirect traffic and let us keep our bookmarks.

The Holt District Website sounds cool, as long as you don't have to log in to comment and you use something besides Twitter to let us know of updates. I don't need yet another account on a website I don't use just to post comments. I am more than glad to visit a HD webpage, though.

I would prefer non-combined updates, since I find it much easier to comment on shorter entries. Long entries make me feel that a short comment/review/critique is insufficient, which means my chances of commenting plummet. I've written a chapter review for a work on fanfiction.net once that was ~1200 words, and was the 5th or 6th of similar length left on the same story for prior chapters. Clearly I need to work on brevity, but I also tend to ignore the large updates mostly because I scan CJs in my free time, and I don't usually have a lot of it at once to go through, say 50+ images, and focus on any of them enough to make it worth my time.

Hope this helps, and I look forward to seeing where you go with this.
Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

My Mayor Diary San Diego: A Reinterpretation

metarvo

I've been falling behind on SC4 over the summer, so I'm trying to catch up.  Sherkston is still head and shoulders over the rest, but at least nowhere listed here lost population last year.  Nice update, Sim_link.  :thumbsup:

I suppose if I had to vote for one of these options, I could live with Option 4.
Find my power line BAT thread here.
Check out the Noro Cooperative.  What are you waiting for?  It even has electricity.
Want more? Try here.  For even more electrical goodies, look here.
Here are some rural power lines.

sim_link



Welcome Back! Autumn has arrived. Let's go check out the colours.
Tweaking the update design slightly and experimenting with fewer captions. Stay tuned for more potential "tweaks"
and where captioning will head.





Small intensification projects in quiet neighbourhoods. Breaks up the landscape nicely, and these condos certainly have a nice view of the fall colours.



A few houses being rebuilt in this neighbourhood.






Plenty of good colour here. Lots of open parkland, large lots makes this area very desirable.









City Planner
Thanks, glad you think so. :)

jmsepe
Thanks! I hope this year is another good year for Holt. ;D As for the satellite view, I took the region view from the Region Census program and stretched the dimensions so it'd be square as opposed to rectangle. Then rotated it and cropped a bit so the edges appear straight, and voila! :)

Themistokles
Thanks! Glad you like the combination. I agree it's definitely easy, there indeed is a lot of nice eyecandy. I try to strike a balance between it all. Sometimes it works, sometimes it ends up being a little skewed to one side or the other LOL. :P Look forward to seeing you around more often!

Dantes
I don't actually have farms in this region (I never built them. Wish I had, but no turning back now 2 years in! xD) - the forests are safe, though. Except for maybe the occasional road to be built, of course...

vortex
Thanks! And indeed, time to get this one rolling again!

APSMS
Thanks for the feedback! The website would not require login. It'd use WordPress, so like other WP sites you could just leave your email and use the name field as your username and you'd be good to go. As for where this all goes, I'm still tinkering. I have a couple of ideas but they aren't going to be implemented just yet. As I make decisions I'll definitely keep everyone up to date though. :)

metarvo
Glad you're catching back up! Sherkston will likely be keeping its title as most populous for a while to come. But one day, Kuhan or Flynn could overtake it. We'll see...


Thanks For Visiting!



romualdillo


sc-4

It's been some time since I last came here, I'm glad to see that great updates are still coming , and good work on the last ones:D

Call me Ludo

sim_link



Welcome Back! Today's Update: A Sprawling Maze
I'm getting dizzy just about now... you? Smaller update today to fill the gap.



Driving around, looking for my friend's house. It didn't quite look like these...



...more like these. Except I don't remember the streets looking like this...



...oh no... this is like being lost in a corn maze...



...I don't remember this school. Am I even in the right town?!






romualdillo
Glad you think so! I love fall personally, so thought I'd bring it to Holt. ;D

sc-4
Thanks! Nice to see you stopping by again. Hope you enjoyed this one as well. ;D



Thanks For Visiting!



Themistokles

That's a nice-looking neighbourhood; I really like how the small patches of open grassland merge with the rather densely built single-family housing and how they complement each other. An a-maze-ing update as always! ;)
Come join me on a hike to St Edmea!

Latest update: 7

"In the end, our society will be defined not only by what we create, but by what we refuse to destroy." - John Sawhill

vortext

time flies like a bird
fruit flies like a banana

sim_link



Welcome Back! Skyline Rising Ahead...
Former parkland (golf course) redeveloped to house more development. Provincial Parliament parks receiving complete makeovers.








That's all for today. Hopefully another update soon. (But, you never know. RL... pesky thing it is. ;))



Themistokles
Thanks, flad you like it! I was happy with how the grasslands worked together in this case, they don't always work out too well when I attempt similar areas. :P
And glad you thought it was a-maze-ing! ;)

vortex
Glad you like 'em. ;D There'll be more where that came from...



Thanks For Visiting!



Happy Holidays!

art128

Can't wait to see the development of this construction work... :)
I'll take a quiet life... A handshake of carbon monoxide.

Props & Texture Catalog

sim_link



Welcome Back! And so it begins...
'Tis the season for crowded stores, lack of parking spaces and crazy drivers... or so they say.



Meet Holt's newest mall. Built in what's essentially (was?) the middle of nowhere. Won't be in the middle of nowhere long.
Lots of construction around the mall, with lots more planned.







It's proving to be a quite popular mall already. And reports show crowds at other malls.... well they haven't died down either.







art128
Can't wait to show it. Most of the construction in this particular picture will be re-developed parks, though the upper left corner will be new development. (Hiding behind the skyscrapers.)



Thanks For Visiting!



Happy Holidays!

benedict

That mall looks great at night.
Click on the banner to celebrate!