WEST END

[JBSimio]

Nice video Paul... and another great farming quad.  The video is actually a great way to present this one and you've done a great job with it.  I like the use of canals and the irrigation pieces too.  I've tried to use those irrigation bits myself a few times, but find that Covington just isn't flat enough...   That whole area is really coming together nicely and the region shots are a good indicator of the little things you're obviously paying attention to.   

Anyway... I think I saw a couple others hovering, so I'll congratulate you on the 1000th post which should be happening within the next few minutes.   

See you next time,
JB

[Jmouse]

What a wonderful story, Paul! Hay is absolutely charming, but seeing it grow from ground zero makes it even more special!

For a long time now, I've felt like I – and your legion of other fans – have had a small role in shaping West End. There are several wonderful new trends in MDing, including multi-media presentations and exemplary work in Photoshop and LE. But the level of interactivity you have fostered is still all too rare.

Congratulations on 1,000 posts and a region population that has topped 1,000,000! Now I'm looking forward to seeing even more development as you move forward with exciting new plans for West End!

Later...
Joan

[sebes]

And BANG there was a rural community... 

I loved watching the last video Paul, and it's very interesting to see how you developped that quad. Also the Berners turned out, not surprisingly, to a very pleasant suburban-rural-community. I agree that the surpassing motorway in Maxis textures looks better than the RHW from "high up", but from closer in shots the RHW looks better I guess.. I have never played yet with RHW myself (downtown Nw Rhenen and Manhattan seemed not a good spot to practize  ) , so cannot give any advise on that, but I think it should give a rural community just that touch of reality that the Maxis motorways miss... Well, maybe in a future one..

What to do with Regent? The choice up to Sebes? No Paul - as Joan said above this is a very interactive MD, and I love to comment on details, and offer some advises or directions if asked for it, but you make the bigger plan yourself , and that should stay. I only want to mention that the 'old' Regent catched my interest in following your MD, so for me, the Grolschish quarter of Regent is like Genesis in the bible: can it you do without? The choice is realy yours and depends on whether you wish to recreate the city (but with grown skills!) or build the New Regent on a new concept.

This is the 1001st post in this MD. I am very happy that Joan made the 1000st: she is your most loyal fan I guess. Congratulation to you Paul for this milestone. Congratulations to Joan too!

[paroch]

Paul:  Merci.

Schulmanator:  Thanks for your comment.

Bat:  Thank you – and yes West End is now through the 1,000 barrier!

Cowcorn:  Welcome to West End.  I'm impressed with your stamina to go through all 50 pages – that must have taken some time – thanks for looking.  And yes, that piece by Prokofiev is certainly quite stirring so I'm pleased you liked it too, I am sure it must have been fun to play it.  I have a few other videos and soundtracks in mind, so watch this space – but unfortunately the ones you mention I do not have.  I do hope to see you back again.

Matt:  I'm pleased you liked the video.  I take the pics using Clic2Pic and then compile the videos in Microsoft Movie Maker which comes as standard with Vista.  It's a neat (and simple) programme.  All of the effects (zoom, pan etc) and the transitions between pics are standard within Movie Maker – there are loads of options to play with.  So it's a mix of taking pics at different zooms to give the feeling of zooming in but then using the zoom effect within Movie Maker to get it nice and smooth.  Hope that makes sense.  I have thought about writing a tutorial on how tomake a vid – guess it's on the "to do list" !!
As for WestJet – yes, it's a budget Canadian airline and I saw many of their planes at Calgary airport in 2007.  The name just seemed very appropriate for West End!  I look forward to WestJet landing at GRX.

Jon:  Thanks for being the guy who set up the 1,000th post.  I knew a few people were lurking (mentioning no names!!). I'm happy you liked this rural quad – I take that as a big compliment from you.  The SG irrigation pieces are fun – but as you point out, really need nice flat tiles to work.

Joan:  Well, well.  West End's most frequent visitor and loyal supporter bags the 1,000th post, congratulations and I am pleased it went to such a great friend.  As for the level of interactivity – well I've had a bit of a development spurt over the last two weeks, so there has not been much community input- but rest assured I have plans for more in the future.  And yes, as you say West End has also just crept over the 1,000,000 population mark.  When you consider the region has been going for over 16 months I guess that's kinda slow – but it still has plenty of room for growth.  Thanks for all your support and friendship over those 16 months and needless to say a special "treble zero" award will be on its way.

Sebes:  Hey good to see you here my friend.  And 1,001 is still a special post.  Thanks for your comments re Berners and Hay and the vid.  I kind of think of these two quads as "sister" villages.  And I am becoming more happy developing rural quads.  I know I still have much to learn but I also know they are better than earlier attempts.

As for Regent – I will keep the grolschist quarter and I have a nice plan in mind to mix in Little Amsterdam with the Casino Hotels – I think you'll like it (but there are more quads to build before then).





First up a very big thank you to EVERYONE who has posted here in West End and helped it break the 1,000 comments barrier.  I think this is quite some milestone for MDs here at SC4D and I'm very pleased that West End has made it.


Another year starts here in West End.  So it's time to move on to a new quad.  We've spent the last three updates in small rural farming quads.  Today it's time to move onto a large quad that will also be one of the most important quads in West End.  Let's look at some pics now, they tell their own story......



This shows the recent development in Berners and Hay plus the quads next in line.  Caranby, then Grosvenor, Hanover and the re-development of Great Portland.  You'll also notice the region population of 946k.


Now Joan mentioned the highway from Piccadilly to Carnaby being out of line..... so I just wanted to show it being fixed.....
Before:


After:

Now the highway serves as one of West End's main arteries, I just hope it will cope with demand!



Development starts in the north west corner of the Carnaby quad.  Looks like more farms are filling the large plain.



And they also hug the foothills.  That's mighty fertile land and it's also nice and flat, so the farmers just love it.



Development in the north east corner also features more farms – they flow down from Piccadilly and Hay.  That small town is called Sisson and you'll find out why later.



Now that don't look like a farm to me!  Carnaby was specially "flattened" because it's been my intention to build the new International Airport here for some time.  At this stage one runway will be sufficient and there are two main taxiways which run either side of the runway.



At this stage the airport will consist of only one terminal – and this is the main part of that terminal.  It'll go through a few changes before we reach the final version though!!



Transport links are vital – and you may recall the monorail in Piccadilly that serves the airport.  Well, it comes in from Piccadilly (to the north east) to the airport and then out to the north to head towards Great Portland, Regent and Oxford.



Now the rail network is joined in.  It comes in via a tunnel to allow some commercial development area around the airport.




The airport gains some tarmac for the apron.  At this stage it is very basic and will be changed – but it gives the idea of what is to come.  You can also see the short term parking garage plus commercial zoning around the terminal.



So now the basic layout of the airport is complete.  You can see the small town of Sisson is close to the airport and over 75% of the people there work in jobs linked to the airport.  The cargo terminal and flying club are added at the south east corner of the airport.



Many of the airports I see in SC4 are built right in city centres – whereas I was trying to achieve something more like I see in the UK – airports like Gatwick and Stansted, where they are close to a town but mainly surrounded by farms, fields and wooded areas.  I've added in more farms to the south of the airport to help achieve this look.  It also leaves a nice gap of land to the south where the town of Carnaby can be built. 



Further development takes place, with hotels and Commercials being added around the airport.  Sisson grows a bit bigger and two new residential areas grow on the east of the quad.  Some industrials are zoned near to the airport itself.



Here the town of Carnaby takes shape.  In RL London, Carnaby Street is a very fashionable shopping street, so I wanted a vibrant commercial centre – but look, no development!!



And there's the reason why.  With all the commercial zones around the airport demand has dried up!  We'll see what happens in a future update.




Here's an overview of Carnaby and Sisson International Airport.  There is more work to do on the airport and there are also some spaces to fill in, so come back again to see what happens.  If you look, you'll also see the population has just crept over 1,000,000 people – which I think is just fitting for the arrival of West End's new airport.

The next update (or two) will feature:
-The reason behind the name Sisson International Airport.
-Close ups of the airport and the changes made to it.
-Some custom lots featuring WestJet, national carrier of West End.
-An map of routes flown from Sisson International (still not too late to add in your MD).
-A look around the rest of the quad.

So hopefully, I'll see you here again.

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

[warconstruct]

wow my friend it is a superb update, imposing !

A city as I like it, very good grid systems, a channel, and an enormous airport !
The airport with this single track is very successful, a lawful length (I suppose lol), since the regulation of a track of airport is on average of 3000 m .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runway thanks to all our excellent BATteur , all the parts are available for made up a realistic track ...

I wait with impatient the sights close to the city , but last week end of vacancy for me, but I would visit you as much as possible 

Paul / Warconstruct

[bat]

Wonderful first update there in 2009 and in January!
Great work on the airport and farms of Carnaby!
And looking forward to the next update (or two)...

[thundercrack83]

Hi, Paul!

First let me say congratulations on 1000 comments! That is such a milestone to reach, and it could not have happened to a better MD, a better MD author, or a better friend!

On to the update! Your placement of everything is perfect! I love how you've placed the highway and the canal as a bit of a barrier between the farmlands and the airport. And speaking of the airport, it looks just magnificent! I love the terminal, especially, but the way that you have everything set up--the runways, the cargo terminal, the flight club--it's just fantastic, my friend!

I can't wait to see what else you have planned!

Take care!

Dustin

[art128]

Enormous work here Paul, this airport is looking great, but just try to connect the plane to the rest 

Arthur.

[Jmouse]

Super update, Paul! If I were going to try and build an airport, I'd want it to look just like yours.

As always, showing the thought processes that went into construction is so interesting!  At first glance I wondered about having a large airport in an agricultural setting. If any of those are dairy farms, the cows are going to give buttermilk every time a big jet takes off! It looks great in the overviews though (77.14 and .17) - the placement couldn't have been better, especially with the growth that appears to have sprung up.

As for the lack of commercial development in Carnaby, we all know by now that it takes patience at first, a little dickering with the zoning if patience doesn't work, and finally, a round with the wrecking ball if all else fails. Development around the airport looks great, though, so maybe step one will work in a while!

You've made a fine start on West End in the new year, and things will only get better from here...
Joan

[dsrwhat316]

Great work on SIA, Paul! The "technical shots" provided were interesting to look at; seeing everything come together from an empty parcel to a bustling international airport. I also like how the farms are built up to the airport, making it feel like it was always there.

I have a suggestion for the runway/taxiways; you should add more access to the runway from the taxiway. The gap between the only two entrances seems too big. Still, a fine update Paul!

~ Dan

[sebes]

Excellent update Paul - you know that I love airports and airlines, and this update was very special to me. Thanks for making the airport in a rural setting - you don't see it much in MD-land but I think in Europe most airports have runways between meadows and field. You are very wise to have build in some room for terminal growth... I am sure there will be several carriers filing for slots to operated services between Dutch American airports and WestEnd.

[Fabian93]

Great looking airport, you have build there, Paul 
I think it matches very well to it's surroundings
And congratulations to more than 1 Million inhabitants 

Fabian

[threestooges]

Excellent update Paul. A massive new tile, 1,000 posts and 1,000,000 residents. A fitting way to start the new year. Thanks for the tips on WMM. I may have to give it a shot at some point in the future. "Borrow" your technique. In 77.13, what are those two orange buildings just up and left of the control tower away from the airport? The area filled in nicely, and the farms do pull off the rural feel for the airport. I have nothing against urban airports, but it seems, more often than not, the towns grow around the airports rather than the airport being built into a town, so I like this setup. I also like the organic/freeform style of your farms. Are there natural terrain features that tend to cause them to grow that way around your parts, or is it from year of tracts being bought and sold? Also, for your airline map, Greenacre is GNX. GRX is Granada, Spain. There are a few local airports too, but none that I think would handle international traffic. Looking forward to what's to come in the coming updates.
-Matt

[Pat]

Hey paul i am sooo amshamed of myself that I missed your milestone mark gaaaaaaaaah that bites!!! But hey anyways congrats hitting 1,000 replies here in west end a well deserved at that!!! This update is great watching you building that airport and a monster one at that!!


Can't wait for more,

Pat

[bokrif]

West End is developing with a high speed!

[FrankU]

Paul, this is a very nice update. It gives some insight in the way you develop your tiles and that is always interesting. It's really instructive to see how other people work with SC4.
Your airport, with the separate cargo and club is really nice. It almost makes me want to download the complete airport stuff into my plugins and build ahead! But I guess I'll stay with seaports for a while. Maybe someday I will show some pictures of that stuff.

But, back to your work: it's like a tutorial. Show us more!

[paroch]

Today it's time to honour the latest member of the "West End Double Zero Club".

The award for the 1,000th post goes to Jmouse.  Joan is the most frequent poster here in West End, so it's kind of fitting that she bagged this mile stone.

Joan was also the 500th poster – and here is a reminder of the award she got then as "Official Housebuilder to West End"




The Mouse House was still in its development stage then – but now it is finished – so to honour Joan as our 1,000th poster she has been upgraded to the "Master Housebuilder to West End".

And here are some pictures of two different developments of Mouse Houses:









I think they really add to what is available within SC4 and they are a great set of houses – you can download them from HERE on the LEX.


And to recognise the fact that the 1,000th post is special I've also arranged for a copy of the LEX disc to be delivered to you Joan – enjoy!!


Personal Replies and a full update are still in the pipeline and should appear soon.

'til next time......

[bat]

Nice area there! It looks great! And looking forward to more...

[warconstruct]

wow splendid home !! very good job 

[TheTeaCat]

Magnificnet Paul  
Sorry its been a while but RL took over (I'm sure you know what its like )
But now I've caught up on 4 missed updates and what great ones they were too.
I loved the rural shots particularly and the airport placement is what I too am more used too.
If thats your first attempt at one - its marvellous  

Looking forward to more


TTC