Zug Territory

[Zezug 6]

Welcome to the Zug Territory!

The Zug Territory was settled hundreds of years ago, originally by people looking for furs and other riches. In the late 1800s, the discovery of coal in the region brought more people and even though many of the mines have run out, the region has found new industries to survive and thrive with.

 

The most important form of transportation in the region is rail. Much of the freight and passenger traffic moves via rail, and the heavy rail works in combination with HSR, subways and buses to move people about. The most heavily used is just the normal rail, and a large corridor has been built connecting Houghton, Shelby and Calumet. The regions relies on rails like the U.S. lives on highways.

This post will have the most recent region view (Update 10), and a transportation view soon. Any comments/suggestions are welcome.

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Welcome to the world of CJs. I am glad you have chosen to showcase your work. I look forward to seeing your area grow over time.

[Patricius Maximus 236]

The Zug Territory could use a little work, but it is pretty good, and has a lot of potential for growth and evolution. I'm sure it will only get better as time goes on.

Updating every 2-4 days is a good schedule. I use a similar one with Franklin County (1-2 days).

I wish you luck.

- Patricius Maximus

[Mr. Ican'tseemtobuildagoodcity 0]

I agree with Patricius Maximus that it does need a little work, but i have my first CJ, Crater City, and that also needs some work. My updatung schedule is also 1-2 days. Did you use any STEX stuff? just wondering.

[Zezug 6]

Replies

Schulmanator- Thanks

Patricius Maximus- That's what my plan is, and I''ve read some of the Franklin County CJ, it's pretty good.

Mr. Ican'tseemtobuildagoodcity- Yes, I am using STEX stuff, it's kinda hard to see from the zoomed out views. My port is the PEG CDK3 stuff, and there are a few other things I'm using, which will show up later. Alot of BSC/Simgoober stuff.

Shelby Township

Shelby Township is a small community to Houghton's south. For many years it was a bery small sleepy farm community, but all has started to change. With Houghton's explosive growth, people have started to move out here to get away from the pollution of the city, but still are close enough to commute to town. It is also the first town that the railroad passes through once it leaves the port.

The "downtown" area has developed around the original train station in the area on top of a small hill in the area.

This hill tip also boasts the new hospital (top middle of bottom pic), which has been built planning into the future for Shelby's growth into a more populated suburb. It also houses the local elementary school.(Bottom right of top pic). Both are from Simgoober (I'm pretty sure)

Here are some farms to the east of the downtown at the bottom of the hill

Along the tracks leading into the area you can see the train maintenace building(by oppie). It was placed out here because the land is cheaper and less crowded than in the city next door. The farmers are mixed in opinion about the growth the area is experiencing. While it is making their land worth more, some are afraid they may lose land soon or be forced to move to make way for newer developments.

Farming isn't the only industry that exists out in Shelby...

Deposits of coal and oil have been discovered out here, and are being exploited right now. While they aren't huge reserves. the city still looks forward to having these sources of income for now.

Oooh. a bridge, where does it lead? Wouldn't you like to know?

And now, for a parting shot of a Houghton park.

On the bottom edge you can see a hospital and an elementary school, both of which are due for major remodeling sometime soon.

And that's it for now. Any suggestions/questions are welcome and I will try and answer them.

[RON-E 0]

great industrial area!

one way to make it more realistic would be to download the slope mod here at ST.

linkie

it will improve the way the rail lines look, smoothing them out to be more realistic, it will also help with the steep road inclines you have. they will be more gradual and more realistic too

[Patricius Maximus 236]

I'm glad you plan on "improving as you go". It's a great strategy. It also helps future newcomers, as they can see the "evolution" of a CJ.

You've read some of Franklin? I'm glad you like it. While you're at it, post a comment. All feedback is appreciated, no matter how insignificant.

- Patricius Maximus

[PhilsCafe 8]

Hey! Interesting name, Zug Territory... may I ask where where you got that from? I like your map a lot, hilly terrains can be challenging but they also offer great opportunities. The railyard at the port and the farms look very nice too. Very good job for a first update! Keep 'em coming!

[Zezug 6]

Replies

RON-E: I have gotten a slope mod, and I am now working on making the roads and rail look better, thanks for that.

PhilsCafe: The Zug part is a common mispronunciation of my last name and the territory seemed right, since so much of the area is empty, for now.

 

Update 1.1 Baraga and a Park

Now after screwing up making the post a couple times in a row here, I am hopefully going to be able to post this update.

To Houghton's east is Baraga, which has a small commercial and residential population right now and it is the place to go for people who want to escape the noise and dirty air of the city, but don't want to smell the cows. 

The newest craze for design in Baraga is focusing on public transit and walking. Here is a picture of the residential and a commercial area that are being built.

The red brick area is the walkway that has been built to encourage walking, and it is placed near the school, hospital, and GLR stations to discourage using cars.

This is the new outdoor commerce area being built with wide open spaces to attract companies to build here, however access for cars is very limited. An underground parking garage will be put in soon to give people a place to park.

Now in Houghton, an choice faces our council. The building of a city campus (consisting of courthouse, mayor, ect. not a college, at least not yet) for all the facilities has been proposed, and the locations are either directly in the center of town along with an existing park, or to be built on the edge of the current development.

The choice is between the area circled in red or a completely new development on the outskirts. I have put up a poll and I would appreciate it if people take the time to vote.

 And this is a picture showing what the railroad looks like after the modding. The previous post by me has the original photo in. I just put it in because I liked the difference it made, but it was annoying to accomplish.

Edit: Does anyone have any suggestions for a good city hall?

[NMUSpidey 3,956]

So, you're building a university in Houghton? Is it gonna be Michigan Tech? That's too bad, because they always get whooped in hockey to a classier school full of better looking students farther south on M28...

Nice pictures, by the way. There is a lot of new development. I recommend a water mod, though... The blue color is, uh, slightly less than realistic. Keep up the good work!

[Zezug 6]

You guys are just soberer, we are just too drunk to see the puck.

[anik 14]

Great start! Great region, too!

I think this CJ serves as a good example for everyone who's beginning a new CJ. Take a lesson from this one.

[PhilsCafe 8]

I was just wondering because there's a town called Zug nearby where I live. And it was kinda weird to read it as a CJ title . So it looks like you're going for a Midwestern style, really nice so far. As for a city hall, I recommend JBSimio's SmallTownUSA Town Hall.

[Zezug 6]

Replies

NMU Spidey- Thanks, and I'm not planning a university yet, but I was going to try to model MTU in BAT eventually, so please STAY OUT OF MY MIND!!!! Also, I took your advice, and went out and got a mod tha makes the water a deeper blue, looks a bit mroe real.

anik-Thanks

PhilsCafe- Interesting, I do know there is some place in Switzerland named Zug and there is a Zug Island not to far from me, so I geuss it is more common than I thought. Kinda ended up with midwestern since that's what I've known most of my life. Kind of a subconcious thing. I think i will end up using that city hall, looks pretty nice/

Update 2

Ever since the founding of Houghton, which is the seat of government for the territory, the focus has been on making mass transit effective and to remove cars from the road. This stance has lead to heavy investment in buses, heavy rail, and light rail and no investment in highways. As the population grows and spreads out, close attention must be paid to keeping our transit state of the art and more than adequate for our needs. In keeping with this, the Zug High Speed Rail Line(ZHSRL) has started construction. A ground test bed was built linking Shelby and Houghton, and has proven so succesful that it is being extended through to Baraga and will be extended more and more as areas pop up all over. Pictures are below.

This is the start of the line in Shelby, just one station and a quick link into Houghton. The plan is to elevate this system once more of it goes online, as it is easier to work with the elevated rails with regards to existing roads.

This is the ZHSRL as it comes into Houghton from Shelby into the single station there, and you can see in the back where a previous heavy rail line was torn up and is now being replaced with elevated HSR. This development should help commuters into the city, and continue the city's reign as the center of activity.

As development in the region has occured, people have started to complain about a very dangerous oversight by the government in regards to the hills. Hills are being cut into and nothing has been put up to hold back the hills from sliding. Believe it or not, this has recieved in much angry mail being sent to the offce of the Governor and finally I've gotten the solution devised...

Walls!!! So simple, so beautiful and will decrease the losses due to landslides. Also has the added benefit of cutting down on angry letters to me and the papers. And that bubble saying unzoned land isn't there regardless of what you "think" you see.

The decision has been made to tear up the downtown for our new civic area. I said civic campus in my previous post, and some people may have been misled into thinking this was a university. It is actually just a centered area for civic services being provided. A close up of the area to be worked on is below, already a hospital, elementary school, police, and fire station exist here. Soon the surrounding buildins will be gone and replaced with City Hall, Courthouse, and emergency services hq's. Oh yea, and some more park land to make it look nice.

Finally, a picture jsut because I like it.

Anyone have any suggestions for some good police/fire stations/headquarters?

[Zezug 6]

Update 3

The decision was made, by a 2-1 ratio to build the new civic comlex in downtown, and construction has been completed on it.

The area now contains the Zug regional hospital, an elementary school, high school, police, fire station, Mayor's house and a town hall. Sims flock to the area to enjoy the parks and take care of business here. It is also close to the ZHSRL, which allows easy access. Here is a closer up shot of the city hall and mayor's house, which are in the area below the hospital.

The local library and the city museum both reside here too.

As the region grows, more and more demand has come up for a regional airport. It is still in the planning stages, however it has been decided to be built ot the east of Houghton across the water. To allow this to happen, a high speed rail line has been constructed to connect to the area.

An island had to be built to allow rail access across the rivee, and the bridge design blocks anything larger than a barge from coming through, so it was constructed before the large harbor area. The construction will start as soon as planning and funding for the airport have been secured. Sims are excited about the opportunites that having a large airport will bring, but are wary about the costs associated with it. The rail runs right next to the garbage docks, allowing visitors a lovely view of the garbage created by the city.

[PhilsCafe 8]

That's the one I was referring to (the place in Switzerland that is). Nice job with those row homes, looks a lot like a blue collar neighborhood (especially with the dirt streets). I also like that inner city park. But what happened to Mayor's house? Are your detail settings on 'high'?

As for fire stations... go to the STEX and search for goofyguytpa + fire. If you find a good police station too, you can tell me .

[Zezug 6]

Philscafe- No the settings were turned down some, I had forgotten about it and didn't turn them back up before taking screenshots

Shelby

With the high speed rail line, heavy rail lines and two lane highway going through Shelby, new developments are popping up all over. The town now has over 18000 people and demand for development is high. A new commercial development has shown up at the bottom of the hill that contains a Best Western Hotel, our first Tractor Supply Co., and some more offices.

This development has been built over former farmland, and you can see the existing farmland still around it.

Two two-lane highways run through Shelby, Hwy 1 runs north to south, and Hwy 2 runs east to west. These two highways meet up south of Shelby, and at that intersection now exists a small development of commercial and residential buildings.

At this intersection exists a gas station (the white and green building) a Mcdonalds, Wendy's, KFC/A&W combo, and a small rest area for travelers. The highspeed rail runs next to Hwy 1, as it does throughout most of the area. Heading to the right from here, which is east on Hwy 2, to a small vacation area that has developed for people who want to escape the city life.

This small village has nice beach access and is very popular and even has a small bus system and a rail station that make it easier for people to travel to here.

Thanks for reading. Any questions, suggestions, or comments are welcome.

[Zezug 6]

First, I have a question for anyone who reads this, how do you take pictures of your entire region? Do you just use the in game view or is there a mod or program that you use?

Houghton

The population of Houghton has skyrocketed to 218,000 people, and the influx of people has finally lead to high rises arriving in Houghton. AT&T, our main phone provider has set up their Headquarters for all Zug operations in town.

A night shot of the area near the AT&T building.

The large increase in population has led to increases in air pollution in the city and plans are being put into place to help decrease the pollution. Part of this is increasing the amount of grass and trees all around, including within the industrial areas.

Some empty area along the port was replaced with trees and grass areas to help increase the attractiveness of the area.

Here is a picture of the ICE train that has been imported from Germany.

[PhilsCafe 8]

Hey, there is a program for doing this. It's called Region Census and you can find it on the BSC Lex (here) on SC4D. Make sure that you're registered on the website and on the exchange.

I really like the fact that you've added some more trees... these create a very nice feel. I especially like that wooded area near the beach. Great combo!

[jacqulina 162]

great start and intro allready looking nice my friend

[Zezug 6]

Philscafe- Thank you, I couldn't remember the name at all

jacqulina-Thanks

Hancock Airport

Construction has been completed on the first stage of the Hancock airport, just east of Houghton.

While the airport has been opened for flights, parts are still under construction such as adding parking and other ammenities to it. It is connected to Houghton by HSR and road.

Shelby

Shelby has started on construction of a riverfront commercial district, and here are some shots of what has been completed.

The last picture is an overview of most of the area and the farms near this development will probably be gone soon for more commercial/residential developments.

 

Any questions/comments/concerns are welcome, thanks for reading.

[newyorkrunaway1 110]

airport has potential, looking forward to more!

[Zezug 6]

newyorkrunaway1-Thanks, should be some development with it once I find some more stuff that will look good there.

Zug

A picture of the region followed by one showing the transportation. I would take the shots from Region Census, but I can't get it to load this region. This is mostly just to show where everything is in relation to each other. Clicking on them should take you to a larger image.

Chassell

Chassell is a heavily industrial are with a small residential community. It is on the major rail routes through the Territory, and has a small port.

This here is the residential area, which has easy access to the HSR line that runs through the area.

Here is an overview of the industrial area, look at that lovely, clean water.

Here are some auto factories in the Industrial district,

[PhilsCafe 8]

Great region view... I like how the different towns are connected. The on-the-hill development in Chassell looks quite amazing too.

[art128 4,618]

It's a great region shot your town look good too !

continue

Arthur

[jacqulina 162]

wow growing well my friend,excellent work and pics

[newyorkrunaway1 110]

nice industry, very steep terrain, i would go for something more realistic, but thats me

[Zezug 6]

PhilsCafe-Thanks, glad you like it, took me a bit to get it to look that way.

art128-Thanks, I will.

jacqulina-Thanks

newyorkrunaway1-Thanks, and I'll keep that in mind

Zug Territory

The Zug Territory has grown past 600,000 people, woohoo!!!!. (It's amazing what zoning high density does)

Calumet

This is a major residential area with over 150,000 people who mostly commute to the industrial areas to the north in Hancock.

These are shots of different areas in the city.

The projects being built at the north end of the city to deal with the demand for housing

Shelby

Shelby is another city that has gone over the 100,000 person mark, and has seen much development since previous updates. This is the old area of town, which has small houses, and German Fachwerk style houses have become popular here.

This is an overview of the heaviest settled art of the city, with the older area at the left up on the hill, and the new development is to the right of the HSR line. Many high density buildings are being put up to deal with the demand without using up all the available land.

Thanks, next update should be showing the industrial parks developing around the Hancock airport.

[Zezug 6]

Hancock

The area around the airport has become a popular place for industry, and seeing as not many people want to live near the airport, and industrial buildings don't tend to be very high, it seems to be a good deal for the area.

First, our lovely garbarges.

A dividing wall has been built between the airport property and the industrial areas to keep people out.

High tech and some commercial buidlings right outside the main entrance to the airport

Houghton

With a population well over 300,000 people, and the high density building that is occuring, it has been decided to replace the trams with a subway system to save space, and turn the old tracks into parks and plazas. The rapid growth of the area has put much strain on the mass transit system, and I geuss I shoudl do something about it.

Here are two shots of the last days of the trams.

And with the huge increase in people travelling, we have finally gotten bigger HSR stations. (Its a monorail station, but I can't get any HSR stations to work.) these now can support many times the people of the previous stations, but some are still overcrowded.

[PhilsCafe 8]

Ok, first, I like the fact that they're re-using the space of the LR tracks... I think that's quite realistic. What bugs me a little bit, is the repetitiveness among the commercial buildings near the airport... there are very nice commercial BATs out there you could download to replace them. I think restaurants, strip malls and stuff would look great there... it would also help the industrial sector, which for itself looks very good already. Just a suggestion though .

Otherwise, keep up your good work.