WEST END

[Ennedi]

I missed some updates and I see new great cities! 

I agree with Joan, 25.06 is awesome, but I love 25.02 too! 
The city centre is very diversified and well composed, and rural areas are beautiful. And the region view looks very realistic in it's developed part.
It's a pleasure to visit your MD 

Adam 

[Pat]

Paul wonderful Update here and about that Jail, so you just placed those lots together to create that complex? WOW!!!  I love the devolpment of the Canal...

[tooheys]

Hi Paul

Nice region shot and I see you are planning ahead. Looks like you have some interesting areas to work with going forward.

Shaftesbury is looking fine and I like the overview.  Hey, even the hwy is almost flat Nice use of the canals,
although wouldn't it be great to have a diagonal lot.

The closeups along the canal are nicely done, you do put together a nice suburban area. Of course those tennis courts help 
The two trains at the crossing in the last pic, beautiful and I would suggest you waited a while for that to happen.

Another great update Paul

Dave

[bokrif]

Paul, that is an awesome update. When I asked for a little more variety I meant this.
Shaftsbury looks cool and I see you didn't forget about the little things hence it is a "quad" tile.

[Nardo69]

Just got your pm ...

Nice overview, but isn't it a pity that there are only diagonal pieces for oppie's Kanal and not for Simgoober's or PEG's? They would become handy so often. I like oppie's kanal buts it style doesn't fit into rural or industrial ...

Well, you know that I don't like level crossings, do you? But unless the railway line is not a high speed main line with maximum speed >= 160 km / h I can tolerate that one! (I guess I should bring my Thoughts - thread to SC4D ... )
And apicture dedicated to me - wow ... 

In 25.05 you might try these underpasses here. The site is German but the files are multilingual. Stays just the problem that I do not know if they have left-hand pathes or not ... 

Take care my friend (and don't forget to make backups!)
   
Bernhard 

[Heblem]

Nice pictures, I really like how the cars goes is the right direction 

[paroch]

It seems that many MDs I visit have recently passed their one year anniversary.  Well, West End still has some way to go, but it has now passed the 6 months stage!  So it's a kind of mini mile stone, one that I'm sure many MD'ers wonder if they'll make but are pleased to reach. 

REPLIES:

Sebes:  Filler Quad  - well, you know what I mean.  And congrats on spotting the seasons glitch!  Basically I used seasonal trees in one part and non-seasonals in the other - what a goof 
I am sure our debate about left side driving will continue!!  I tell you, us Brits just like to be different!

Jmouse/Joan:  Thanks Joan, great comments.  But banjos are dead ends, whereas roundabout actually lead somewhere, so if I'd put banjos next to the highway then that really would have caused confusion - do you follow 
The dead end in front of the town hall was because I forgot to extend the railway across the quad.  So after it was developed I had to smash the railway through the middle of town which required some serious re-working.  Some was more noticeable than others!

Bat:  Thanks as always my friend.

Warconstruct:  Well, if you liked the PEG channels in Shaftesbury, I think you may be interested in what's next!

Earth quake:  Hey, thank you.

Ennedi/Adam:  Welcome back!  Good to see you and thanks for the encouraging words 

Pat:  Cheers mate.  And yes the jail was just a series of bits and pieces.  I have done something similar with a nuclear power plant.  I'll try and find it for a future update.  More canals to follow.

Tooheys/Dave:  Almost flat - but not quite!  I've done some extensive levelling on my next quad - We shipped in a boat load of Balnavians to do the work!  Yeah, those tennis courts are proving popular in West End.  People actually spend more time hitting the ball instead of running after them 

BoKrif/Krizstian:  I'm please you liked this.  It is hard to think of new things to show each time, so I appreciate your comments.

Nardo69/Bernhard:  Diagonal canals, hmmmmmm, maybe one day!  And no, I didn't realise you had an aversion to level crossings.  I generally try to avoid them, but due to my bad planning on this quad, I had little choice.  But, the crossing is not too far from the station, so trains tend to be slowing down, or only just building up speed.  I dedicated the picture for you because I know you love a train picture, and two passing on a crossing?  It doesn't happen often!
Thanks for the link.

Heblem:  Thanks and yes in England our cars always go in the right direction (just ask Sebes)


UPDATE 26 - 9th March 2008

Project Kingly Amsterdam

Only a small teaser I am afraid.

My next quad is Kingly.  This is the most western part of West End to be developed so far.  I was thinking about how I can do something different and not just produce more low rise suburbs!  The city of Regent had a development called Little Amsterdam that proved to be popular.  Well, since then Regent got corrupted, I've downloaded loads more Dutch buildings, so thought I'd try to do my version of Amsterdam.  I guess I'd say this is not a true copy, more an "inspired by Amsterdam" city.

First, I need to tell you that the canal system is based on the real thing and it took about 6 hours to lay (and it is not yet completed).  Secondly, my plugins for Residential and Commercial have been cleared out of everything except those by Haarlemgold and Vanderaap.  Some buildings that are both I and C have crept in.  I may add MattB's W2W commercials soon as they would fit in.  More may be added later.
And finally I have to thank Sebes who has given me some pointers as he lives in Amsterdam and Joan and Dave for giving me some hints and tips behind the scenes.

There is still much to develop, so only some teasers at this stage:

26.01  Kingly Orientation:

I know that I will also need to develop parts of the tiles next door to help with demand - already getting the dreaded "no job zots".


26.02  Amsterdam Canal Layout:

Look at all those canals.  If you've not been, then you're missing out - it really is a FABULOUS city.  The sqareness of SC4 means that I have some restrictions.  I've also squashed the system in places to make it all fit.


26.03  Kingy Canal Layout:

Six hours that took!  I have changed the rail in the top left.  Also the bottom left part of the canal system has also been amended.


26.04  Central Station:

What a magnificent BAT!  I've continued to use the Dockland Light Rail tram mod.  If anyone knows of a more realistic Amsterdam one, just shout.
Plopping that GLR alone took a long time - so many crashes to desktop - but I think I've worked it out now.  If you move a GLR puzzle piece over the Tonkso GLR station it crashes.  Solution - plop the stations last!


26.05  Oudezuds Achterburgwal and Voorburgwal

This is the heart of the Red Light District.  The modern tower needs to be bulldozed!  But hopefully this gives you a flavour for more of Project Kingly Amsterdam.

Criticism of the layout / building choice is only allowed from the Dutch 

Seriously, all comments welcomed, as always

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

[bat]

Looking really nice so far! Great work on Kingly Amsterdam! And nice use of these canals!

Looking forward to the update!

[sebes]

Paul - great pictures. The layout of the canals is very good, given the limitations of SC4! I can easily believe that it took you 6 hours to lay this out, but you can be proud of the result.

The textures of the pedmalls does not realy match to the real Amsterdam. But as your former Little Amsterdam (in Regent) was established by Dutch emigrants, I guess this town will be as well, and the emigrants had of course to use the local available materials to build their streettiles    I like it a lot that you use the same texture in the entire town, also  with the GLR tracks. 

By the way: Vester made some Amsterdam Trams. They are part of his GLR tram mod and can be found here.

I like the map that you have.... You might be interested in this map as well..  You can zoom in and switch from map to satelite view.

Looking forward to the rest of Little Amsterdam in Kingly!

[bokrif]

I prefer PEG's canal lots, however I suggest you to have a look at the new remodelled SImGoober canals. They look extremely realistic - IMHO.
Anyway, nice start.

[warconstruct]

very good start my friend ! I am of agreement with you that Amsterdam is really a fabulous city !
The channels are quite selected it make well "industrial" , because one should not forgotten to pass it from this city, even if yours comes from immigrant 

Beat of German type they are not which it thus misses you will be able to make of large thing !

without waiting more I tell you good continuation 

Paul / Warconstruct

[Earth quake]

Excellent.
I am impatient of to see other pictures.

[Jmouse]

Lookin' really good, Paul!

I'm not going to make any more remarks about the details in Amsterdam, (you know what I mean, don't you! ) but must say you're making remarkable progress on a layout that is no doubt a formidable challenge. The train station looks great and so does the neighborhood. I love those BATs.

Also I noticed the power lines and honestly can't remember if you've used them in other cities or not. Maybe you have and I just didn't notice because you usually present areas that are more developed. I'm glad you've chosen to show Kingly this way, though. It's been a trip watching it grow from ground zero, and I'm sure your many other fans will enjoy it as well.

I'm looking forward to seeing how you deal with the diagonal canal layouts (trees, parks, buildings, etc.). Do keep up the good work.

Until next time,,,
Joan

[tooheys]

Looking good Paul 

Nice work with the canals, and your your choice of residential lots really fits the theme in my opinion.

The rail station looks grand and the GLR fits in well.

Great teaser and can't wait for the next update.

Cheers

Dave

[rooker1]

Wow.........six hours on the canal.  You must have no more patience left.  But the end result looks pretty good.  This is what I thought you might be doing but I wasn't sure.  I can't wait to see the city when you have more work done on it.  Should look very good.

Robin 

[paroch]

REPLIES:

Bat:  Thanks - glad you like the canals.

Sebes:  Well, as an Amsterdammer, I have to listen to what you say.  Thanks for the link to the trams, I think you'll like the result.  And as for the ped malls......I chose those ones because they match with the GLR (and my market lots which will appear).  And whilst they may not match Amsterdam, the fact they all match each other and give a unifrom appearance, well that did it for me . Thanks also for your pics of Dam Square and the link to that great map.

Bokrif:  Thanks for the suggestion.  Not sure I have the stamina to change them all 

Warconstruct:  Good to see you here again and thank you for yout kind words.

Earth quake:  Well, here are some more pictures.....

Jmouse:  Joan, thanks for the words.  Ahh, the power lines, yes they are there because it was very much "work in progress".  And yes, the diagonals are proving a challenge.

Tooheys:  Thanks Dave.  Here's the next instalment.

Rooker1:  Hi Robin.  Yes the canals were a bit fiddly.  And progress is quite slow in this city.


UPDATE 27:  16th March 2008

I was hoping to give an update sooner than this, but it has been slow work on Kingly Amsterdam.  I'm having severe demand problems at the moment.  This city is somewhat isolated in the region and as such, there are not enough jobs to go round.  So..... I'm having to do some development on the quads next door to stimulate the need for more houses.

Also, because I am concentrating more on creating a nice looking layout that is similar to Amsterdam, it means that the road layout is not at the most optimum for SC4 game needs.

Still, it's fun so far and today I want to concentrate on the areas near to the station:

27.01  Central Station (still developing):


27.02  Centraal Station (Amsterdam):


27.03 Central Station (Kingly):

Here is the station updated.  Some more buildings have sprung up and most importantly, Vester's Amsterdam trams are now in use - and yes, they do fit sooooo much better than the Docklands Light Rail I was using before.

The plaza gets so busy in rush hours.  It really is quite interesting to sit and watch it.  I've had four trams and three trains in the pic at any one time, plus cars, buses and people milling around.

I've included two pics so you can see how it's developed further with parking now installed at the rear of the station.

I wish the ped malls looked a bit busier.  Does anyone know of a mod/lot that adds more pedestrians, or will I need to go and create some custom lots?


27.04 Prins Hendrikkade - east:

A mixture of old warehouses and shops line this road opposite the station here in Kingly.  All the commercials are busy along here, as they get plenty of passing trade.  Behind the buildings you can see a busy part of the canal network.


27.05  Prins Hedrikkade by night:



27.06  Prins Hendrikkade - west:

This part of the road is opposite the station.  The trams heading to the west side of the city exit the station plaza, cross the main road and go between the two modern office buildings before winding their way through the streets.


27.07  Ousterdok - Kingly:

The Oosterdok is the old dock in the heart of the city.  The station is to the left of this picture.  Here in Kingly it is home to many industrial units.  You can see that I'm still developing the area, with GLR stations to plop still.  And look how bad the pollution in the river is - urgh!
I like this picture because the avenue bridge is raised and a boat is in each of the locks.  These locks are the main entry and exit to the city canal system.


27.08  Ousterdok - Amsterdam:

The hardest thing to recreate here was the water level.  Hence, why I've used locks and spillways.  Clearly, the real Oosterdok is at the same water level.  Also, the sheer size of the dock was hard to accomodate in my pre-terraformed tile.


27.09  Canal Locks:

Here's a close up of the two main locks into the canal system.


27.10  Spillways:

And here are four of the main spillways that are used to regulate water in the canal system.  This is just outside the central station, indeed that tram will be at the station is about 45 seconds!


27.11  Damrak - north:

This pedestrianised road is the first place most tourists see when leaving the station plaza.  There's a good selection of tourist hotels and restaurants here to choose from.
In the canal / basin here, you'll find plenty of tour boats to take you around the city's canals.  Now.....if anyone can suggest a good Bat/Prop to use to create some tour boats, you'd be my hero!


27.12  Damrak views:

A view out of a building looking across the ped-mall, tram and one-way road onto the canal basin, where the tour boats sit.  And a shot looking back towards the buildings.  In the background is the station.


27.12  Damrak - south:

The trams run along Damrak from the station heading out to the southern parts of the city and also out towards the Leidseplein in the south west of the city.
Some nice shops can be found along here.  I've also put the city hall here.  I seem to recall some grand buildings where I put the city hall, but can't remember exactly what they were!


27.13  Dam Square - Amsterdam:

One of the major squares/plazas in the city.  Trams skirt round the edge and there are some large buildings around the sqaure.

27.14  Dam Square - Kingly:

And here's the Kingly version.  It was hard choosing a building to use as the monument and I have to thank Sebes for the suggestion - I think it's a close as I'll get.  I know the big tower next to the canal isn't really there, but I thought it fitted nicely.

I'm pleased with the pedestrianised shopping streets to the right of the square.

You may also notice that in addtion to Vanderaap and Haarlemgold's Bats, I've also added MattB's W2W commercial series.  I think they fit in well.


27.15  Nieuwendijk:

This is a close up of one of the ped-mall shopping streets.  Maybe a bit too much repetition - this is a busy shopping street:


27.16  Nieuwendijk on a busy day:



And to finish off, lets have a look at one of the residential grachts, to the south west of the station - Herengracht.

27.17  Herengracht:



27.18  Herengracht - Kingly:

The cream/yellow buildings are not typically Dutch, but I still like them!  And the red London bus just reminds us that we are in West End, not Nederland!


Well, I hope you enjoyed the tour.  This was a slightly different update for me!  And there is so much more of Kingly to show you.  I have not decided on the next update yet, but it may feature:
- A tour of the canals
- The major tourist sights
- A trip along the GLR
- Focus on the Residentials

There is so much in Kingly I want to show you that each of these subjects could be an update on its own.  So, if you have a preference, let me know.

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

[Jmouse]

Massive update, Paul. No wonder it took a while to finish!
First of all, love the RL photos mixed in with the game shots. You lost me on the tram discussion  , but there is a "crowd" effect available - I'll look it up and PM the ID.

I like 27.07 despite the pollution - it's just something you have to put up with until certain game elements kick in. Anyway, the bridges look good, and you always get lucky with the boats and trains showing up at just the right time! I'm impressed by the locks - never seen that done before - and the spillways (27.10) look great, too. Nice water effects.

Damrak - South (27.12) is absolutely charming. One of these days, I hope I'll get to see some sights outside of the Deep South, USA! You made a good choice for the monument in Dam Square - Kingly (27.14), and it looks like you must already have the "crowd" effect - if not let me know.

Nieuwendijk (27.15) and Herengracht - Kingly (27.18) are beautiful neighborhoods, and judging from the RL photos you've posted, you have done a great job of creating them.

As for the choice of updates to come, I'd love to take a trip on the GLR to visit the tourist sights, see the canals and cruise through the residential areas. *saves the best for last! *

Until next time...
Joan

[sebes]

 

I am at my mom's, celebrating her birthday, but between serving coffee and cakes I just had to look at Westend. I love what I see - splendid - marvelous - and all other superlatives would fit in at this place....

I cannot comment more now - but will be back, also to study your excellent shots in detail. One thing I  want to say now: the tram you picked is excellent!  The ped malls you used also: I like it even that you use a different one than the one that is used in most Dutch-like MD's.

Good job Paul 


Continued: I am back from duty now, and did have a good look at some more details in this update. I really love what you did in the game Paul. The trams are fantastic! When I recommended Vesters tramskins in PM, I was convinced you'd take the authentic yellow tram, that I also had in mind. But your choice to pick the "new" blue & white ones is daring, and giving the MD an extra fresh element! I'd be interested in that crowd-mod too if someone knows it...

Your Prins Hendrikkades (both parts) are very nice. I can picture myself and my tram going between the two buildings towards the western part of town... (just missing the coffeeshop on the corner there ).

I had to look twice at the RL Oosterdok picture - I thought had the wrong city there because I did not recognize anything - but the Montelbaanstoren proofs it's indeed the Oosterdok and Prins Hendrikkade! The picture is taken in the 50's, but it remained looking like that until the 90's or so. It's a amazing how quick that part of town changed in the past 10 years! The locks and the spillways are amazing - and what a good way to make the transition from the plopped canals to the river in your map! They look very natural there.

You also did an excellent job on the Damrak and Damsquare. The solution you found for the National Monument (you know how we call it) turns out to be very nice. The blue flags that you used fit very well with the blue street ornament that the city placed on Damrak.

The Heerengracht in the last game pictures is very attractive. You really have a nice mix of bats in Kingly, and they all blend in very well into this town. I am looking forward to your future updates with residential canals. And you know what - it's great to see this all build by a non-Dutch person - you have an eye for details that even locals seem to miss. 

To finalize this "review", I have a question to you: the pictures that you added,  are they made by yourself or are they googled?

[bat]

Fantastic new pictures of Kingly Amsterdam!

And the central station + area is looking beautiful!

Great work on it!

Looking forward to more...

[nedalezz]

That is some awesome work, Paul. No other words can describe it...simply put, you have done a magnificent job of re-creating the canals.

I hope to continue to see much more of this inspiring project.