Argenta:The Silver City

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

-Greetings, all. My name is Dominik and I am (and have been for 5 years) an avid player of SimCity4. In those five years, I've found SimCity to be consistently an engrossing pastime of mine that has expanded my imagination tenfold. Im an artist by nature, so I have proclivity for a relatively appealing visual arrangement. Im also immensely fond of actual major cities and use all resources available to me in order to research and mentally categorize cities via their idiosyncrasies and seemingly useless statistics and to ultimately inspire and enrich my SimCity experience. Also during those five years, my internet access history has been spotty at best, which unfortunately didnt allow me to actively post comments, much less image intensive posts. Therefore, I apologize for not being able to share my feelings with other impressive CJs. But I hope you consider my city before shunning me for inadvertent exclusion. 

-Once again, this is a collective 5 year project. Now, the region itself isn't five years old, rather it is 5 years of combined practice that has yielded Argenta. Given my virtual anonymity, I'll only post 3 panoramic like screenshots of the developed inner city along with a caption describing the picture in short. If readers take interest, then I'm more than happy to upload, share and discuss more in future updates.

- Lastly, one interesting item I'd like to share before the actual unveiling. Argenta is the largest map on what was originally the Berlin map. I didn't have access to user made regions, so I just made do with Berlin after substantial landscaping. Argenta is currently the central city, and is surrounded by 12 medium maps, 9 of which are inhabited, 7 of which are complete. Also, ultimately, Argenta is an amalgam of existing cities inspirative qualities; the majority of the names in the city are similar to London, the geographic aspects are alluded to from Los Angeles-like coastline, Seattle-like escarpments and Pittsburgh-like CBD. But enough, here's a few images.


-This is a shot of the Southbank in Argenta. Particularly feature here is the Arts&Administration District and Ansonia. Major roadways shown are Swaneford Road in the south and Alexis Avenue to the north. Renaissance Boulevard intersects in the west and Blair Avenue at a diagonal in east. And the riverside Mantella Parkway abuts the Viatic River at the top of the Southbank.



Shown above is the central area on the Northbank. (I didn't expect the rocket to launch for this shot, but serendipitously enough, it did!) The major stadium complex at the bottom is the Viatic Center; site of major football championship games and world touring groups like U2 and The Stones. Roadways include Argosy Avenue in the south and Highline Avenue to the north. Diagonally intersecting in the west is W.National Way and intersecting in the east is Danvers Avenue at Coltishall Junction.


-And lastly we have the CDB (note the similiarity to Pittsburgh.) Intersecting in the east is Chambers Street. to east-west and Secorra Boulevard. S. to north-south. And diagonally near the river split is Ellender Avenue to the left and Monument Avenue to the right.
Numerous attractions and landmarks reside on the Midbank, many, if not all, will be shown and described later.


-Okay, well that's all I will share for now. As far as mods are concerned, I have nearly 900 downloaded and use atleast half of them. I use alot of lots from NDEX, JaWood, SimGoober and of course, the NAM. Also, I plop a money trainer in each city in the beginning. Im not sure if the use of the trainer is discouraged or not, the way in which I build my cites, which is to quality-not-quantity approach of realism, is enough of challenge. I like to have infinite budget to finance all my infinite ideas produced by my boundless imagination. And I don't really have much left to say, but that you consider and hopefully enjoy these images and words. 

-Cheers.

[penguin007 27]

sounds interesting but no pics make sure they are jpeg not png. Download PIXresizer this will convert the files and use image shack to upload them

Will

[granto93 4]

hmmm, cant see the pictures but its been a 5 year project so i will be back to see the results my friend

[jacqulina 162]

wow this is a great start and intro,amazing work allready,excellent work and pics my friend

[gshmails 536]

Looks great so far Dominik!  There is nothing frowned upon when it comes to you and your region.  The only rule is have fun.  Good luck and can't wait to see more!

[SpecialEddie 3]

I can see how this has been a city 5 years in the making. It's incredibly detailed! The sloping is pretty good, and even without seawalls, your coastlines look really smooth. The density is actually perfectly balanced--it's a nice type of over-crowdedness. Your transportation system is what I would call "organized chaos."

However, is your city only occupying one city-tile? I'd definetely like to see some suburbs and outlying districts.

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Wow. Thanks for the instant responses! I would love to share more, but you have to understand that I do not have internet access on the same computer as where I play my SimCity. So updates will be not constant, but they will be quality. I'll go ahead and take a few more large scale pictures depicting entire cities and I'll have the requisite region view and transportation map as well. 

SpecialEddie; I relate to your organized chaos reference. I shun the US-style grid, and opt for a more organic, European layout to my streets. They're motorways, not interstates. And the city of Argenta has a complete bus, regional rail, ferry, metro, and monorail facilities. Regardless, substantial congestion still occurs. Most often at the avenues and motorways that lead in and out of the city of Argenta.

[Cleaner475 150]

this looks brillaint - great pics and work - I'll definetly be back for more - Perhaps I'll even add this to my favoruites,

good work , very impressive, keep it up,

Richard

[Guiigg 0]

Interesting x)

Looks like a very cool city

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Well, I wasn't expecting this sort of response! Not that its a problem! Okay, well I suppose Ill just post the larger views and then show some of the surrounding cities. Also, is it permissable to post images not within the game? I ask because I have constructed a wall map of my metropolitan region that is rought 4 by 6 feet or so. I would like to share that as well. Otherwise, are there any paticular requests? Maybe for some of the data view overlays or the most congested corridor in the city? Regardless, I'm cooking up an update with multiple pictures this time. Just bear with me, what with my connection difficulties.

[Schulmanator 5,812]

I would like some closer in pix - see the details you have done. You are off to a good start!

[IDS2 3,429]

Hey that's cool high dense and wow 5 years! Long time. We're all avid. Looking good!

[Shadow Assassin 336]

Also, is it permissable to post images not within the game? I ask because I have constructed a wall map of my metropolitan region that is rought 4 by 6 feet or so. I would like to share that as well.quote>

It's your CJ, you add whatever you want if you wanna show it.

And this is one nice city. It's very crowded, disorganised, and you've done a great job with it!

[Amerikaner 42]

wow my friend that is looking quite nice...5 years in the making whew i can barely keep a region for like a month before i get bored lol i love that tower on the edge of the island in the cbd it looks very cool your city looks very thoughtout...and by thought out i mean disorginized lol love it i CANT wait to see more my friend

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Update 2

 

-Haha, due to overwhelming support and cheer, I've managed to upload five more shots from within the city of Argenta. They are close-ups of some my preferred sights in the city,

Above is a close up of the Arts & Adminastration District, which is mainly civic, and Ansonia,, which is mainly residential to the east of Blair Avenue, the diagonal roadway. The north-south roadway in the west is Renaissance Boulevard, known locally as "the Avenue of Splendors", due to the fact that it is anchor to what can loosely be called the museum district in Argenta. The bottom three imposing structures, from left to right are; The Diocese of Argenta, the Department of Municipal Affairs, and City Hall. Immediately to the north of City Hall is Gallagher Park. To the left of the park is the Museum of Modern Art of Argenta (MOAA) at bottom and the Shepherd Museum of Science above it. Directly across at the bottom is the Pritzker Musuem of History and above the Forbes Museum of the Moving Image. Barely discernible is the Southbank CityLink monorail in the bottom of the image.

-Attica University, in the north central area of the Southbank. Argenta Colony FC play at Old Eccleson Stadium in the bottom center. Alexis Avenue is barely discernible here but where it intersects with Swaneford Road at the southeast corner of the stadium, is one of the most congested intersections in the city. The university area immediately north is renowned for research in biology, medicine, and the arts. The Zane Ellis Bridge crosses the Viatic River in the right center.

-Hedgegate Park in west central Northbank. Highline Avenue bounds the park at south and west and Stanwick Street from the north and east. The surrounding area is primarily mid-density residential with a few high-density rises not far off. Traffic flow is better than in most neighbourhoods.

Broadham, in east central Southbank, is one of two main commercial districts in the Southbank, apart from the main CBD on the Midbank. It is basically a higher density office park.The roadways  converging the to right of the M-22 Airlines Expressway are Mantella Parkway diverging north and Blair Avenue diverging south. Suprisingly, traffic flows rather well in this corridor.

And finally, this is central Central Argenta, otherwise known as the CBD on the Midbank. Cannondale Crossing is the plaza at the intersection of Darving Avenue running east-west, Chambers Street running north-south and Monument Avenue running diagonally. The AMT (Argenta Metropolitan Transit) Central Plaza is the bottom center of the picture. The central subway station converges along with elevated rail, bus and monorail connections. Any facility that serves multiple means of conveyance in the metropolitan area is referred to us a UIC, or Urban Interconnectivity Center. The city adminastration passes numerous ordinances and countless dollars on promoting alternate modes of transport that exert minimal damage on the environment and which move commuters with grace and efficiency.

-And there you are folks. I'll have region views and few screens of the surrounding cities tomorrow morning. But for now, enjoy and good night!

[tank2049 0]

*cough every 5 mins *cough* lol he knows what i'm talking about..but like always keep up the good work

[Cleaner475 150]

looks very nice - good skyline and your waterfront looks nice -

i'm loving the nights pic

good work - keep it up,

Richard

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Ok, guys. I see that my CJ has fallen drastically from the front page because I've been unable to post an update with images. However, I can and will do that right now. Enjoy!

-Ah, first a region view. A bit dated. Im at 1,710,00 or so now. The northeastern most map has been much expanded and developed. Argenta in the center, and the twelve surrounding cities.

...and..the transportation view. All city names and motorways are show. The avenues are too numerous to name, but the intra-city orbital is the Grand Rotary Road -1.Three seperate other motorways crisscross the metro region and numerous city spurs link select satellite cities. Milos B. Foreman International Airport in Odenssa, north of Argenta, is the city's primary international gateway. Various secondary airports are scattered throughout the region.

-And here is the airport as mentioned above. The M-15 motorway (Airlines Expressway) approaches the Grand Rotary and essentially becomes a dual freeway until moving north due to spatial conflicts with airport grounds. The city was rather obviously modeled after LAX; with two pairs of twin parallel runways and my attempt at the famous Jetsons-style terminal is manifested in the form of the St.Louis Arch upon having proceeded throught he destinations interchange.

-This is Ipswich, currently the second most populous city in the region, at approximately 175,000. Shown above is Walford Zoological Gardens, south of the CBD. The confluence of Bayline Avenue, Dannerstowe Boulevard and Roxbury Avenue in the upper left corner designates the vehicular nexus for the city. Broadwick Boulevard traverses through diagonally throught the lower half, linking the southern neighbourhood of Wilesden, across the Shakespar River.

-Hastertt. Probably one of my more aesthetically appealling cities. Well, atleast in regard of urban planning and design. Capstone Avenue and Brighton Boulevard intersect at the southern half of the Torres Esplanades. Just south of this lays the CBD for this particular city.

This particular city probably is home to greatest concentration of high wealth Sims. A well-developed hi-tech industrial sector is located north of this shot. Shown here is Ammont Beach with Lake Curitaba just north. Vickers Park rests at the southwest corner of the Grand Rotary and City Spur 3 interchange.

Clairwick Park in Feldheim is a footballers dream. Two pitchs and ample surrounding greenery are conducive to World Cup fantasies. And club action takes place just south at Dayton Field, where the Feldheim Rovers FC play. 

[deimo5 52]

Really cool city, man. I like how you used the Y-intersection into the airport.

[Shadow Assassin 336]

It all looks good. But I have a little issue - it's the mountains north of the city. It looks a little weird by itself there.

As for the airport, you might need a little more space between the end of the runway and the buildings. Otherwise, the airport itself is fine.

[jacqulina 162]

i wouldnt worry about your cj not being on the front page my friend some kind soul allways brings them back eventually,i update mine every 2 or 3 weeks usually lol,wonderfull work you are doing looking good so far,growing well,great pics too

[penguin007 27]

Nice region view and this cj looks very promising

Will

[homeandaway 1]

this really does look so stunning!, yet so realistic! the motorway is planned well well! and youve done a great job trying to keep the high-rises to their hight overall! - great, cant wait to see more!

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Yeah, the mountains...hehe. I think I decided to called that range in the north the Corridian Mountains, and that area isn't really going to have any populations, so in my fervor to terraform the region, I mainly focused on the inhabited maps. But you've reminded SA, I do have to address some "cosmetic" issues with those mountains.

And the airport's proximity to the businesses directly across the avenue happened rather inadvertently after traffic along that avenue towards the airport entrance really increased. Combined, there are over 60,000 hi-tech and commercial jobs on that map, and only 40,000 Sims, so there's plenty of commuting going on and thusly, fertile commercial real estate is cultivated.

To everyone else, there will be an update from Argenta with 5 or 6 images later today. Stay tuned.

[Schulmanator 5,812]

A nice set of pix. You have a good urban area under development here.

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

Okay, Im back with another update. First, I'd like to share a few interesting trivia items about my city, Argenta.

-Every street in Argenta is named, with the exception of industrial roadways - my justification being that I zone them for employment generation purposes solely and hardly merit any more attention than that, in my opinion-. Other than that, I usually leave the street naming process as a final detailing procedure. Sometimes however, I'll have ideas for roadways just manifest mentally and I just type them into the label tool and store them in a yet undeveloped corner of my city. Once a desirable yet anonymous stretch of avenue or street develops and expands, then I just drag the desired name onto it. I also keep a composition notebook with written entries, park designs and motorway and transit systems. I like to have it when I travel to major cities, and since I can't always have my city accessible, I just scribble down bits of inspiration from real world locations like Seattle and Chicago. My gameplay is a constant, whether concious or sub-concious, I'm perpetually ruminating upon all matters urban.

-Every time I play Argenta, I break my own personal records. Previously, my most populous map was a medium one with 225,000 residents. Argenta, on a large map, has 890,000. That's personally gratifying, since I originally estimated being able to fit 750,000 sims. Which leads to me a question. Argenta has a small international airport approaching capacity, due to its distressed appearance. Once the expansion bid is confirmed and constructed, will my population cap increase? Why do ask?

-Because ultimately my goal for Argenta is 1 million. Combined with the 12 city metro region, 2 million. And as far as the region is concerned, atleast 3.5 million would be spectacular. Im currently hosting 1.7 million, so Im halfway there!

-But, enough chit-chat. Here's some images to enjoy.

-Show above is the relatively peaceful neighbourhood of Highchester Gardens in north central Argenta. It is one of only three low-density zoned but high-wealth earned areas in the city. The neighbourhood's calm is usually abrogated whenever traffic on Danvers Avenue coagulates near Queenwood Road.

 

-Ladbrooke Station in Yorkdale in north Argenta was constructed as an attempt to alleviate congestion at the nearby Kincaid Office Park. The station was constructed along Sutcliff Road at M-15 to maximize transit innerconnectivity in the area.

-L'Moda Galleria is the most upscale shopping center on the Northbank. Its presence along with the Kincaid Office Park directly across the avenue both contribute to substantial traffic congestion along one of the primary roadways to the international airport and employment north in Odenssa. It consistently ranks as the most congested stretch of avenue in the city.

-Gadwall Junction in Radora Heights on the Southbank is a major crossroads. Colby Street ferries residential traffic between Radora and Radora Heights, and north-south airport-bound Sheffield Avenue intersects with the beginning of Alexis Avenue, the main east-west route on the Southbank.

-That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed. Stay tuned for more.

-Dom

[crazyyaya 4]

pretty good, great night light photots

[SwitchbladeSaint 0]

-Right, time for an update. I'll post five images right now, and six more tomorrow morning. Since the last set of images were from surrounding cities, I'll focus the current update on the star city here; Argenta.

-Argenta City Hall in the Southbank. Gallagher Park is shown just north. Reedmartin and Stanyan streets intersect on the left and Blair Avenue passes diagonally at right.

-Tilsdale-Beckett Medical Center on the Southbank, just meters from the banks of the lapping Viatic River.  Located at Mantella Parkway and Sapporro Drive in the Foxhall neighbourhood. The very tip of Gresham Park is visible in the right corner.

-The West Industries UIC (Urban Interconnectivity Center) is the primary transit center to the residents of the Southbank. Diverging here are city transit buses,metro, and monorail. Im currently considering adding regional rail in the form of a adjacent train station designed for dense urban capacity. 

- The dual metro station at  roundabout of Aerospace Boulevard and Cardiff Street. Some of Argenta's most expensive boutiques, bistros and bookstores radiate outwards from the stations.

-Gadwall Junction. Morning rush hour. Traffic here tends to be unidirectional during peak times. Flow is usually either north to the Central Island Ferry Station, by way of Sheffield Avenue and Colby Street, or to Hollyfield-McGovern Worldport just south of this image.

- The intersection of Alexis Avenue (N-S) and Swaneford Road (E-W) is the most congested avenue-avenue intersection in the Southbank. Traffic is moving between Attica University and the Hayashi Industrial Sector and the motorways in between.

-Stay tuned for more.

-Dom

[Schulmanator 5,812]

Nice stuff. You have a great city underway!