Nyhaven: Views From Within (AIN)

[choco1 4]

Nice start, you have some interesting design techniques! I will keep an eye on this CJ.

Great work!

[USMC 0]

Great work. I really liked your region view and I am excited to see how your engineer untangles the city. One comment though, in your picture "Venue 5" the parking lot looks a little bumpy. Maybe it's just me though since I live in a very flat area. Keep the updates coming!

[crazychickensc12 84]

loooks good, nice place for the simlympics and nice logo also, although i would suggest a little terraforming on the Venue#5 Parking although this is just an opinion, but this is a very nice CJ here i'll definetly be back!!

[infinitum19 0]

cool venues for the simlympics. can't wait for more updates. I like your downtown and the city hall area. the airport is soo big. How about adding a space for the UN?

[yoder7652 21]

very nice presentation for an olympic bid!

[MiniMark 7]

Quite impressive CJ and good luck with your bid for the Simlympics...I hope I spelt that right

[S1acker 0]

Wow, really impressive, I hope you decide to bid for the December Simlympics, bidding starts October 15th.

[woodb3kmaster 342]

First, I think all you viewers deserve to pat yourselves on the back, since it was thanks to you that this CJ has reached two pages! Thank you all so much for your responses, especially people like iamthouth who offer constructive advice for transportation improvements. Rest assured, thouth, your name will not be forgotten among the citizens of Nyhaven. Now, since I don't want to redirect all of you to my reply to S1acker in the Simlympics bidding thread or come up with something original that basically says the same thing, I'm going to quote myself:

Originally posted by: woodb3kmaster Thanks! I'm glad to hear that I don't have to wait until December to bid for a normal Simlympics, and I'll definitely bid next month. I've been working on expanding the highway network to allow access to the more distant venues; the plans will be included in a future update. Also in the works, in order to make Nyhaven more attractive to tourists, are: new museums, a downtown performing arts center, waterfront landscaping, and the revitalization of midtown, possibly involving an entertainment/theater district. All this will, naturally, be shown in progress in my CJ.quote>

As part of these plans, I've prepared a map of the region's existing and future highways, which was partly influenced by your comments. Red indicates existing highways (with the dotted line showing the path of a tunnel), yellow lines are highways that are either under cunstruction or planned, and blue lines show the routing of US-30 through downtown Nyhaven and a planned parkway to connect Thunderbird Stadium with the future US-830.

I am also considering an additional east-west highway that would connect I-103 and US-830, but it would be built through existing development - never a pretty option. I'll see what the best routing would be.

Meanwhile, I've redesigned the bid logo to better fit my intention. This may still not be the final version, as I can see some parts that could be improved.

Here's the intended symbolism: The five parts of this expanded fleur-de-lis are, obviously enough, replacements for the Olympic rings, and they are meant to evoke the confluence of the world's peoples in Nyhaven for the Games, followed by their return to separation, much like the distribuaries of the Columbia which converge and diverge beside the city. The black and white band, symbolizing the Games themselves, unites them all for however brief a time.

Alright, that's enough of a sidetrack. We'll return to the main storyline with my next update. Keep your eye on Nyhaven!

EDIT: Here are some carefully-compiled statistics about the region at its present size:

Population: 743,302

Budget: All cities combined post a net loss of $16,658 with total available funds exceeding $55 million.

Average EQ: 156.67

Average life expectancy: 85.605 years

Average resident income: $49,513

Average mayor rating: 102.94

Average commute time: 32.757 minutes

These data were averaged by taking the figures from each of Nyhaven's 14 populated city tiles, multiplying the values by the city populations, adding them together and dividing by the regional population. This way, I was able to keep the poor, uneducated agricultural towns from adversely affecting the stats more than they should. When bidding opens for the December Simlympics, I'll update them and use them to give the ISC members a better idea of how healthy Nyhaven really is. (I'll also make sure to use Excel next time around; that'll save me a lot of time!)

[iamthouth 0]

Love the inclusion of the stats! EQ & LE looking good, but an Olympic committee might wanna have a closer look at the budget since you're posing a net loss. The new infrastructure plans will bring the commute time down.

If you decided to build a connector for I-103 and US-830 you may want to look at sunken highways (tunnels) that you can build over. I'm not very good at this, but I'm sure someone else would be able to give good hints. [Edit: Just realised you had some near the airport] Building through existing development is never popular nor easy.

Also, does Nyhaven have a ferry network?

[woodb3kmaster 342]

Hello, folks! Sorry for the recent lack of updates; I've spent the past week moving back to LA in preparation for the upcoming school year, but I've also been playing SC4 and improving Nyhaven. At the moment, I seem to have run up against some writer's block, as I can't decide what would make a fitting continuation of the storyline as I have it now. It's especially tricky since the city keeps changing as I play it, so keeping continuity is a challenge.

Therefore, I am appealing to you, O fellow Simtropolitans. I want to know what you want to see next in this CJ. There's a lot I can show, but I only have so many infrastructure-related pics. Here, then, is my question to you: Should I continue with the story or switch to a more conventional tour-style CJ that follows the region as I develop it?

I eagerly await your answers.

P.S.: Yes, thouth, Nyhaven has several ferry termini. One is even located near the proposed Olympic park. However, with so many other ways to cross the river, I don't think it's getting much use.

[RushHourFreak 1]

i lovewd the map and the simlympics logo, i cant wait for more

[Duke87 1,070]

Eh? What's this? Duke commenting on a CJ? Zomg the apocalypse is coming!

Actually the word's "Engineer's view" caught my eye in the recent replies, so you got lucky.

Being a civil engineering student myself, I look forward to a story told from the point of view of one.

It's a nice idea.

That's also not a bad landscape you got set up there... you terraform that yourself?

-Duke Out

[manman99 2]

your city is very appealing, great shots, aaannnndd, dont forget to give night shots!!(but Im sure you will)

                          Manman99                   

[jacqulina 162]

great work on those updates very nice beginning to your cj and fantastic pics

[Gaston 0]

wood,

     I'd stick with the story line approach.   That is what draws me back again and again.       That is the thing that I personally enjoy about a CJ.      

     If you have writers block you need to go back to the beginning and reread what you wrote.   It may just make you remember where you originally wanted to go with this story.       Then work on the city with those goals in mind.     Originally you talked about all the problems with the transportation in the city and that you had to fix it.   That is a good place to start.    You can always persue the simlympics theme later. 

          Well that is just a suggestion.  And you DID ask.  LOL   Looking forward to more in the near future.    

[woodb3kmaster 342]

Alright then, if you all like the story aspect of the CJ, I'll stick with it. Just a cautionary note, though: I've resumed my university studies for the year (see avatar for where), so I don't know just how often I'll be able to post new updates. Now just happens to be a good time

First off, have another look at the very first image in the CJ. See anything different? Heh heh heh...

Also, since classes only started a couple of days ago, I've had plenty of time to play the region, and I've already expanded the suburbs and improved central Nyhaven quite a bit. I also built all the freeways shown on the master plan, so now I'll focus on both turning what pics I took of the I-203 construction into an update and finding a suitable path for future WA-404, my planned connector between I-103 and the new US-830.

As a final out-of-character note, the Nyhaven meetropolitan area is now home to about 870,000 residents and almost 400,000 commercial jobs. Here's a current region view:

And with that, let's resume the story with update 5: "A Night Out"

What a day. After I got back from my tour, I wasted no time coming up with all kinds of infrastructure improvements. Overall, I think the freeways were the easiest to plan for, since I could have them built in mostly empty land. Unfortunately, though, while I had heard of the files for Route 404, a proposed Northeast Freeway, I just couldn't find them. When I looked out my office window and saw lights on in the skyscrapers, I knew the search would have to wait until another day.

Leaving my office, I met up with Jane, who had helped me get that police chopper ride I needed for surveying the inner city. She told me about the recently-concluded Midtown Renewal project, which her department had spearheaded. Until her project had begun, midtown was in even worse condition than now. However, with the conversion of several blocks around the renamed United Airlines Arena into an entertainment district, the area was booming. She showed me a recent picture to prove her point:

I have to say, I was pretty impressed. "How good are the clubs?" I asked.

"They're incredible!" Jane said. "As it happens, I was planning to go to the ATOM Blue tonight. Do you want me to add you to my reservation?"

"Why, sure!" I replied. You can do that? I thought to myself.

"Great! We should probably head down there pretty soon; midtown gets pretty crowded." With that, we hopped on the subway and headed for midtown.

I could hardly believe my eyes when I stepped out onto the street. I hadn't expected to see such vibrant colors in a region famed for its grey weather. Here, though, it was as if I was back in LA or London. The streets were full of night-owls headed for who knows what restaurants and clubs. Not knowing my way around, I let Jane show me to the Hard Rock Café for dinner.

Afterwards, it was time for us to head for the Club ATOM Blue. I was expecting some small, clandestine place, but what did I see as we crossed 11th Avenue? A huge tower, bathed in blue neon light, with the massive ATOM Blue logo at its top! This must have been one seriously exclusive club; I could hardly believe the views from the top, where the actual club was located.

Once we had tired ourselves out dancing, I noticed an ad for the Pan-Pacific Performing Arts Center's current show and just couldn't help but suggest that we go see it. Jane enthusiastically agreed, and we were off to see Grendel, which had arrived from LA not long before I had.

After the show, Jabe had to head home, so I bade her farewell. But rather than go straight home, I thought I would visit the Fourth Avenue Pier, since it wasn't all that far from home and I was already out. As I looked out onto the waves and the city, I thought - about work, yes; I had to come up with a lot of new infrastructure for the Simlympic bid Nyhaven was about to submit. However, I also thought about the night's events. It all seemed so right, so perfect...

Coming up next: Update 6, Olympic-Sized Headaches

[Shadow Assassin 336]

I like this CJ

You've done a great job with it thus far, actually.

I'm definitely going to visit this from time to time.

[S1acker 0]

Really nice update, I love the story. Can't wait untill the next update

[RushHourFreak 1]

Incredible downtown, nice map, i like the highway System, pretty nice night shots

[woodb3kmaster 342]

While I'm busy preparing the next update, here's another night shot of the skyline; I had meant to include it in Update 5 but forgot. This image was the basis for my signature:

I've also been refining my plans for the Simlympic park, as you can see below. A lot of development has happened near the site, and there are rumors that some initial venue construction may begin soon as part of the area's long-term future as an athletic and educational park.

Finally, here's a less conventional (as far as SimCity goes) satellite view of the metropolis. Growth is really taking off west of downtown, across the Columbia.

Click the image to view the full-size version.

See you soon with a new update!

[Fischbob 9]

That's a great city, and the story comes to match it! You've certianly outdone yourself with the movement over to plot-based stuff, while still providing enough raw city pics to satisfy any SC4 fan. I'll be following this.

[woodb3kmaster 342]

Update 6: Olympic-Sized Headaches

"Excuse me, sir, but there's a call for you from the construction site," my secretary said. I picked up the phone. "This is the chief engineer. What's going on down there?"

"Sir," the foreman said, "we have a serious problem here. With all our machinery rolling down local roads, the neighbors are threatening to shut us down. We need a better way to get our supplies delivered, anyway; a lot of our trucks have been arriving late because of traffic."

"Uh-oh," I replied. "Sounds like we need to speed up progress on I-203. I'll see what I can do." A few minutes later, I was on the phone with the I-203 foreman, who didn't have any better news.

"Well, sir, we're stuck too. Barrington businesses are reluctant to move aside for our project, and hundreds of rich neighbors are up in arms at the prospect of all the noise our project will bring, let alone the delays on Route 30. Mayor Lundgren needs to act, and soon!"

"I agree. I'll let him know."

In his office, the mayor nodded as I explained the situation at the freeway job site. Once I was finished, he voiced his thoughts. "It seems we're in a real fix here. Perhaps we could start work on the connecting ramps first, then use eminent domain for the Main Street interchange?"

"I like the sound of that, Mayor. I'll have the forms prepared for you tomorrow."

The following day

Just when I thought enough trouble had been thrown my way, I heard from the project team working on the new monorail, which I had intended to link downtown with the airport and future Olympic park. It seems I had quite forgotten about the suburbs that lay in the rails' path, and now they were quite irate to find that the necessary right-of-way hadn't been acquired before the homes were built.

However, I had bigger worries at the moment. I desperately wanted to get the new athletic venues built, so I decided to focus on I-203. Tomake sure everything was progressing smoothly now that the previous snags had been resolved, I set a series of appointments to visit the site of the connector with US-30. A couple of weeks into the work, here's what I saw:

Oh, good, I thought, they've cleared the site. It's definitely an improvement...

A couple of months later, I saw that the northern set of ramps was done, and the roght-of-way for the interchange was also clear. Great progress, in my opinion.

This was definitely the biggest part of the project, so when I went back after a few more months, I was glad to see it finished.

Finally, after over a year of work, the connector was done! Of course, it wasn't going to be much easier work to bring the freeway close to the Olympic park site. I knew it would have to cross a wide stretch of the Columbia, loop around the town of Tilden's Landing, and cross another branch of the river before it got close. Bearing that in mind...

The first bridge crossed the widest distance, and it had to be extra-tall for the ferries that passed between Barrington, Tilden's Landing, and central Nyhaven. Not only that, but it had to pass over two coastal roads. Quite the task...

The plans looked pretty good: a three-tower suspension bridge would have no trouble meeting the demands that would be placed on it. It didn't take long before it was done.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the other bridge site was just as challenging. The western bank was much higher than the eastern, so while there would be plenty of clearance for ferries, a long approach ramp was needed. It also had to pass by Tilden Air Force Base, making for a fairly tight spot. Conveniently, though, the rest of the freeway had already been built from Shelbyside.

Here, suspension was also the order of the day, although only two towers were needed for the shorter span.

The ramp was tricky because of the turns it had to take, but it got guilt nonetheless. At last, there was a direct link to the park site! Now things could get rolling again.

After all this time, I was surprised to hear back from the monorail team. At least this time, though, they had good news: with the necessary right-of-way acquired, they were finally able to build through the suburbs. Now work could continue on toward downtown.

With the new freeway link, work on the new venues really picked up. It wasn't long before the new velodrome and tennis and swimming arenas were opened to the public. They, however, were much more grateful for the park between them. Nothing beats a little green space!

[Menotyou 0]

Great work!

[Gaston 0]

woodb3,

   Very nice updates.    I am glad you decided to stick to the story driven stuff.   You are really very good at it.   I am really enjoying this CJ.   Keep it up.   BTW, What ya studying a UCLA?   You may have said but I don't remember.

---Gaston

[yoder7652 21]

looking good..love the update, although it might be nice to see some closer shots of the new development (zoom in)

[crazychickensc12 84]

This is looking good!! Very nice update can't wait to see more

[iamthouth 0]

Awesome updates. I was hoping this CJ would be back, and now you've given us 3 nice updates! City is looking great, freeways looking fantastic, noticed the freways are in place in the overview, nice job! Your suburbs are just amazing.

This is of course ahead of time, but do I spot some potential sites for a Winter Olympics too? (snow-clad mountains).....hehe!

Can't wait for the next update!

[ccecill 52]

this is great. I hope you win.

[woodb3kmaster 342]

Menotyou, Gaston, yoder7652, crazychickensc12, iamthouth, and ccecill: Thanks for your replies! I'm very glad to have your interest, escpecially from those of you who have been following this CJ. Looks like I'll be showing some suburban close-ups before long, given some of what you had to say.

Gaston, since you asked, I'm a second-year linguistics major. I'm still taking a lot of general education classes, but I'm also learning both Italian and Arabic this year. Oh yes, I'm crazy...

ccecill, I appreciate your support. It's a shame you lost the original Dunstonville while preparing it for a competing bid, but I hope you'll have an even better city when the next Simlympic bidding process comes around.

While I work out what to do for  the next update (I have some ideas, but I'll have to play the game more to get pictures), I might as well mention that the last update's third picture was meant to show just how much work needs to be done to improve downtown Nyhaven's waterfront. With all that's been done lately with the Modular Amusement Park Pack, the city could soon get its own waterfront amusement park. If not, though, you can be sure that the banks of the Columbia will be a great place to visit before long!

[RushHourFreak 1]

amazing updates there my friend, keep on the good job, marvelous pics