WEST END

[paroch]

Pat:  Hehehe, you liked the little teaser then!  And thanks re the mosaic.

Bat:  Thanks as always to Bat.

Joan:  You'll be pleased to know work on the Peninsular (and indeed on the whole of Piccadilly) is complete now.  I think there's enough material for two or three more updates before we move on (to what I'm not sure yet!)

Arthur:  Thanks for the comments.  I know what you mean about the Dubai Towers.  Maybe I should "weed" more of them out in future to cut down on repetitiveness.  And I also see your point about the big towers surrounding the small houses.  It's funny whilst you're building you don't often notice these things yourself.  Thanks for the comments, they are very useful and will only help me improve in future.

Derry:  Correct on both fronts there Derry.  It is one of my "top ten" films of all time, Pacino is awesome in it, I'm glad you like it too.  Thanks for all the compliments.  You know, West End was launched on 1st September 2007 and your first visit was on 2nd September 2007, so you really have been with us from the start – thanks for staying the distance!!

Jon:  Whoa what an awesome comment.  You know yourself just how much time goes into an MD so it's always great to get such a reply.  And yep, Scent of a Woman.  He was indeed going through a "dry" spell, but that girl was not his date, he was kinda showing his friend Charlie how to chat with the ladies.  But the point I was getting at was the fact he was blind but still managed to dance the tango so well.

As for building selection...... my plugins folder was just so full that my cities were starting to look a bit too "random", so I spent hours (and I mean hours) re-organising my plugins and now I have a folders for UK, US and Euro and Houses, Mid Rise and High Rise.  This way I can be as specific as I want (or don't want) to be on each tile.  For Piccadilly I chose Euro and UK folders – hence why there are not many "American looking" residential buildings here.  Simgoober has his own folder so they can crop up anywhere and to be more American in style.  So hopefully that is why they seem to fit together.

And as for that avenue...... that ferry port needs an avenue coming out of it, and as it was so close to the road up the incline it just seemed to fit to run the avenue between the road and the terminal.  I guess you could say an avenue is a bit over the top – but it kinda fitted better that way.

David:  Hey thanks for such kind words.




Today we're taking a tour of the Edwards Bay and Bay Park districts of Piccadilly.  Let's just remind ourselves of the layout of Piccadilly with the city overview:



And now the overview of the districts.  Edwards Bay is to the left and Bay Park is to the right.



Edwards Bay is home to more of the mid and high wealth towers.  The views across the bay are highly desirable.



The marina is arguably the focal point of Edwards Bay.  Its twin towers are proud landmarks at the heart of the Bay's image.



The Community School has plenty of expensive cars dropping the kids off each day.



Plenty of developers have tried to get their hands on this area of land, but the home owners just love the location too much, with a pool, a library and gardens nearby who would want to sell up?



Bay Park is a place to unwind, and also very close to the National Sports Complex.



Just the other side of Bay Park is the Athletes Village which serves the National Sports Complex.  I have to admit this took some time to get just the right buildings to grow, plenty of bulldozing and making sure to "make historical".



Of course, the main focal point of Bay Park is the park itself, let's have a closer look:






And we'll finish off with the part of Piccadilly that links Bay Park with the Peninsular.

Normally I'd use retaining walls where there is the change in height, but left it plain this time.  What do you think of the effect – to use walls or to leave blank?


I promise the next update will feature the Peninsular and I can also say that I have developed it using the ideas many of you suggested.

'til next time...............

[Pat]

Hey Paul I enjoyed this update here with Edwards Bay and man I would love to live in the Twin Towers Complexe there!!! That has to be a grand view!! Athlete's park is grand too!!!

[shaylan221]

nICE uPDATE!!



How did you get all those custom houses to grow instead of Maxis ones?

[JBSimio]

Hi Paul,

You make an excellent point (or suggestion?) about juggling your plugins.  As I've been redoing mine, I'm quickly coming to the conclusion that I will need to do the same.  I guess I just need to motivate myself enough to put in the monumental effort of finding, grouping, moving, and packing different folders like you were saying.  I also hesitate to do this because (as you've seen and mentioned) I tend to vary my styles within the same city tile... which won't work at all if I go too far with the idea.  Anyway... on to the update!

61.01 & 70.01 - I really like the contrast between these two.  In the first picture, I can definitely see a fairly well defined area of taller buildings.  Yet, the second picture shows (or maybe emphasises would be a better word) just how much open space and parkland there is within that same area.

70.03 - I absolutely love how those two buildings look... you've done a great job with those few tiles surrounding the lots and marinas to really set it apart as its own little pocket of greatness.

70.04 - Nice school... 

70.05 - Another great contrast... I really like these small sections of "under-developed" spots you've been showing lately.

70.07 - I know only too well how many times you must have had to bulldoze to get this one the way it is.  The effort was well worth it though and it turned out very nicely.  I like the tramway running through there as well... seems very fitting given your history of the development.

All the parks look great... I just couldn't think of anything specific to say about any single picture.  They all look to create some amazing views for all those lucky residents.

   

Until we meet again...
JB

[bat]

Your city looks really beautiful! Nice overview! And great pictures...

[Jmouse]

Very impressive update, Paul. You already know how much I like the overviews - not just because they're functional but because they look really good! The two bays and the marina make for an attractive combination. The school campus (70.04) turned out well, too. I like the walkway around that flat playing field! BTW, what is that building at the very top just to the left of the twin citrus towers?

The Athlete's Village (70.07) is an interesting concept, and one you know I'd never have thought of! And of course there are those lovely parks - an element I've come to think of as one of your trademarks. You do such a fine job on them.

Love the way you wound things up with the Gateway to the Peninsular, too. So now that you've served up the gateway, dare I hope we can enter?

You're doing a great job here and I hope to see much more of the unique region we all know as West End.

Later...Joan

[Simpson]

70.01 is my preferate picture of your city my friend, this is an excelent update

[art128]

this update is really great Paul, all these pictures are looking fantastic my friend. The stadium's area is very well done, like the marina and these parks  Like Joan said, the athletes village is interesting 
Arthur

[dedgren]

Paul, most excellent work here at West End as always.

Normally I'd use retaining walls where there is the change in height, but left it plain this time.  What do you think of the effect – to use walls or to leave blank?

That slope caught my eye as I slowly scrolled through the update.  From a RL standpoint, I thing any slope that isn't natural rock with a face of much more that 10-15 degrees would suffer erosion and slump that would soon leave large bits of that neighborhood at the bottom.  Unfortunately, too, the game makes any elevation change like that entirely too regular, with a "knife edge" crest at the top and corresponding change at the bottom.  I was looking at the color- is that the natural color of the cliff mod you use- it seems very green?

All in all, I would go with some older-appearing concrete walls.  A set of steps down here and there might be nice, too.

Great job in any event!


David

[Ennedi]

Nice to visit West End again 

It' a real pleasure to look at your pictures, I can always find a lot of interesting details there. And I love general views, they are very diversified and realistic! 

Normally I'd use retaining walls where there is the change in height, but left it plain this time.  What do you think of the effect – to use walls or to leave blank?

It is not necessary to use retaining walls everywhere, sometimes it can become boring 
You can leave this wall as is, but I'd suggest to hide lots' edges by trees or some Chrisadams' flora, it will look much more natural
Edit: Or if you would cover the wall by park pieces (grass only) and put some trees here and there, you would optically remove the slope at all 

Adam

[paroch]

http://www.youtube.com/v/jTP1RIV1YBo&hl=en&fs=1

[JBSimio]

WOW!!!   

I knew once you got to this point, it would be a very special update... but you've truly outdone yourself, Paul!  So as not to give too much away, I'll just say it all looks great.  There are some very different elements here, but you managed to fit them all together and make them flow beautifully.  Well done... bravo... jolly good... and whatever other similar phrases come to mind.   

JB

[Jmouse]

Double WOW!  I know the peninsular has been on your mind for some time now, and I knew it would be great when it finally appeared, but this is just nothing short of awesome! Actually, I had forgotten most of the suggestions offered, but I do remember how diverse they were. I never expected you to incorporate all of them, but if I had guessed your plan, I would have known you'd accomplish the impossible with a more than a touch of class!

You've always had a special way of sharing West End with us, Paul. Many MD authors build and post, build and post. But you've drawn me (and others, I believe), into the heart of the development process and allowed us to be a part of it. That's one of many things that have made it unique and such a pleasure to visit.

Great job...
Joan

[bat]

That's an awesome video there! Excellent pictures of your city! And great work on that part with the zoo! Nice!

[Simpson]

Wow, this vidéo is really good my friend as well 

[TheTeaCat]

Fantastic

Stumped for words  that's not like me 

Wonderful the way you incorporated all the suggestions that you got and as Joan said

You've always had a special way of sharing West End with us, Paul. Many MD authors build and post, build and post. But you've drawn me (and others, I believe), into the heart of the development process and allowed us to be a part of it. That's one of many things that have made it unique and such a pleasure to visit.

I couldn't have said it better (Thanks Joan )

Once again Paul you've come up with the goods with a very special video for a special month.
Thanks for sharing it with us all


TTC

[Pat]

Paul I just don't know what to say at all but WoW!!! I will have to come back and watch the full video later with sound and all as I am stuck at work for a little bit longer but anyways I like the oppening and everything niiiice!!!! I cant wait to get home to watch the full video!!!

[MandelSoft]

't Is een plaatje! (translation: It's gorgeous!) A nice mix of all those ideas. Chapeau! 

Best,
Maarten

[Diggis]

Ahh Paul, Sorry I have been absent.  I will have to go back and look through your last few updates soon, but for now that was a wonderful video, but I need some pictures so I can pour over them and fully appreciate the area. 

[tooheys]

Paul great work my friend 

The video is beautifully done, a great mix of developing areas, stills and "live" shots.

Update 70 is just as good. Nice overview in .01, fave's were the area highlighted in .04 to .06. Good choice of lots and I like how you have worked with JB's school  I'm guessing the curved building is the library, got a link, I like.

As for the walls, I pretty much agree with David. You certainly need a wall across the front where the slope is at it's steepest. This could probably continue around the corner for a short distance then make it natural, rocks, trees or just grass on the lesser slopes. Them's my thoughts anyway.

Well the month is almost up Paul, it has gone quick. West End is always on the move, but you have really stepped things up this month and it's all good     So can we expect a huge finale, I hope so   

Cheers

Dave