Gemini River Ridge - A Rural Development Project

[rklesc 0]

Sorry for the delay in getting the next update out. I am not terribly comfortable in urban settings and it has been taking me time to get things right before I come out with a big update. 

So far, I am pleased with the general feel of the "big city" thus far but I am trying to get the employment and residential balanced at the moment and this is taking some time... more time than I would like (but that goes back to the 3-year absence more than anything I guess).

Before I show you a couple of teaser shots, I'd first like to respond to the few people that stopped by and offered some comments on the last update. So here goes...

selles: Vary happy to see you back and thank you so much for your comments. I didn't want you to wait too much longer so I am putting a couple of teasers up.... hope you like...

ComputerGuy890100: Thanks... would like your thoughts on the teasers that follow.

north country dude: LOL... you spotted the pine tree.... eh... lumbering freight. Your prize will follow shortly... BTW... I already had downloaded Peg's Area 52 and will definitely use it when I get back to the rural side of things.

Darmok: Thanks Darmok... would love your initial thoughts on the teaser that follows.

Hawkeye9: WOW... coming from you that is indeed a complement... thanks so much. I hope you come back and give me your comments on my urban attempt.

danielcote: Yes... this will be my first "big" city. Although it will still try to stay true to the rural quality established thus far so please don't expect to see any mega-tall buildings. Mid-rise at best. I have downloaded the plane and bus skins now and they look great.... thanks for the heads up, and I managed to find an Emirates skin!!!

north country dude: (again) So, even though  you were the first to spot the pine tree on the tracks; you DO NOT get a prize. BUT, you commented on the lumbering freight, which I thought was quite clever of me (as I pat myself on the backside ); so I wanted to reward you for reacting to my punny humor... so here is a treat while you surf the forums...

Sorry for the little bite... I wanted to make sure it was still fresh.

NOW... for the teaser...

Since this is my first attempt at an urban environment in a long time, I wanted to get some reactions as to my progress thus far...

First an industrial shot...

This is along the Snake River (to the left of screen)... An Omni hotel has taken up a location on the bank next to the bridge to provide hotel rooms for the industrial clients...

Now for some residential shots.... 2 on offer...

and a single family neighborhood...

Much more has been in development but that's a tease for now...

I would sincerely appreciate your thoughts, ideas and constructive criticisms on this first attempt at an urban environment.

Have Fun...

[gurrgkud 2]

Wow astounding updates! That region is coming along extremely beautiful.

I'm secretly looking forward to the future Amusement Park.

[antsel 841]

Those teasers look great. I really like what you did with the development. Your industrial area looks really good. I find industry to be the hardest to represent realistically, you perfected it. As for the residential area I really like those condos, it looks like acondo complex you might find in the suburbs. I also like the way the way  your house is kind of tucked away from the rest of the R$$ houses.

[SirUnger 13]

AWESOME pics, I can't wait to see more!

[danielcote 9]

Thats greet stuff I love those $$ condos where did you get them! And where did you get the emerits skins.

[north country dude 202]

A COOKIE! mmmmmm,.....question though, where did those diagonal houses come from,...who made those,...they look really cool,....there's so much stuff I've missed.

Updates are looking good, keep 'em coming!

[dfnva 34]

Nice industrial and suburban residential areas. The suburban apartments look great. I also like how you split frontage roads off the main avenue, a realistic effect.

-Dan

[SounderBruce 173]

A nice, tranquil neighborhood...reminds me of mine

[masochist 111]

I'm really enjoying what you're doing here!  Your rural regions are masterful; I love how sparse the housing is.  I've only seen a sprawl of rural housing on hillsides like that once (in Arizona), and it's one of the most memorable sites I've ever witnessed while traveling.  The bronze tint you give all of those pictures also works really well, as it helps to give it that really "rustic" feel (though I might cut back a tiny, tiny bit on the blurring).

Your town looks really good, as well.  I especially look forward to more shots of that high-tech industrial area (I'll have my pen and pad ready to take notes ).

Keep up the good work; I'll definitely be keeping watch on this one !

[saathoff37 11]

Looking very amazing!

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Yum! The cookie is delicious and the tease is equally tempting!

[jacqulina 162]

wow very nice work,great looking industry there my friend,thanks for the cookie.

[rklesc 0]

Since the 99th poster was Jaqulina... I wanted to jump in and grab the 100th post for myself.... I'm selfish that way... besides, this is my CJ and I'll do what I want!!!

Ok, ok, ok... I'm way out of line... in any event, a brief tease again to keep the excitement going... or a big yawn depending on your point of view... 

But first, a thank you for the responses as follows...

gurrgkud: Thanks for stoppin' and thanks for the kind words. Sad to say, the amusement park may be a bit down the road for the moment. Hope you like the other stuff though...

selles: I agree... industrial is a royal pain to get looking right. Trying to make it more park like as opposed to hard core industrial.

SirUnger: Thanks for stopping by and hope you return soon.

danielcote: Those R$$ condos are called Aspen Village Condominiums Multi Color Version by jawood. They are on the STEX.

north country dude: I have been racking my brain trying to remember where I got the angled houses on the lots and can't come up with them. I will keep looking. I got them off the stex though under residential. Sorry I can't be more specific. Glad you liked the cookie.

dfnva: Thanks for the koodoos. The frontage roads help move traffic along a little better.

ComputerGuy890100: I like tranquil settings better than big and bold... glad you liked.

masochist: beat me, beat me... lol. Glad you liked the rural areas thus far. I hope I can deliver on the urban scene as well. I like the bronze tint also but I am not sure what you mean by the blur. I think it may be the tranlation from png to jpg perhaps as I am not adding any blurring to the image. Hope to see ya back soon...

saathoff37: Thanks! hope to see ya back soon.

Schulmanator: Hands off the cookies... that was for NCD.

Jacqulina: Thanks Jac... and hands off the cookie.

Now since this is post 100, I thought I would add a couple of more images to keep ya going...

BTW... still having a bit of a problem balancing the R$$$ with their jobs. They don't seem to be able to find the high-tech jobs.... ARGH... rich lazy bums...

We are beginning to get a little more vertical in selected locations...

And some neighborhood shopping springs up...

Teaser two is done and dusted. Kindly drop me a note and let me know your thoughts.... Constructive criticism is always welsomed.

Have Fun...

[SounderBruce 173]

Nice! Congrats on 100!

POST 101!

[antsel 841]

Development looks great. I'm still amazed by the detail you put on your riverbanks. Where do you find all the ploppable flora to make it look like that? I really like the mixture of medium density buuildings that grew in that residential area. The commercial area looks really good too. It looks very walker friendly.

As for trying to get the industry to look like an industrial park, I think you got it spot on.

[Hawkeye9 0]

Looks really nice rklesc!!! I really like the area so far, it looks like a very clean mid-rise district!!! Congrats on post 100 and ill definatly be back for more of your High Rise area!!!

[north country dude 202]

Meeeroow! hands off my cookie! rklesc: found them! mattb325's Cottages Ornee, there are several designs in that series, all based on early 20th century kit homes,....very cool collection.

Where does the electric come from? Except for the bottom of one High Tension tower seen in one of the latest shots,...red and white circus towers I think (my personal preference is that they aren't too realistic),...check this linkie out:

https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=16152

And for something completely different:

https://www.simtropolis.com/stex/index.cfm?id=16287

Industrial Park looks good. Gemini Rivers is coming along nicely.

For the R$$$ Sims, try zoning for and building up some CO$$$,...I know, it's easier said than done, but that's where they will most likely want to work.

[rklesc 0]

I wanted to bring you something really different, at least far different from what you have seen in this CJ thus far...

But before we show and tell... let's get some replys out of the way...

ComputerGuy890100: Thanks, and would love your feedback on the new images that follow...

selles: Thanks for noticing the flora along the banks. The water flora is plopable from Chris Adams. His stuff is on the STEX. I also mix in plopables from PEG for the pines and underbrush. And then Chris Adams again for flora on the banks for the grasses and wildflowers. I also use his dirt path to create dirt bloches amongst the underbrush before the grass goes in... then scatter in some plopable debris, tree stumps, fallen logs and what-not... oh well... you get the idea. It takes about 7 to 10 layers of work (1. large and small rocks; 2. water flora along the edges using 3 to 4 different types; 3. Pegs beautiful pine trees mixed with lodgepole pine trunks; 4. dirt paths if I use them; 5. underbrush; 6. stumps and fallen trees if I remember; 7. two different types of grasses - green and brown; 8. dirt splotches; 9. yellow wildflowers; and finally 10. garbage.) Maybe I should do a tutorial build-up...what'ya think. BTW... when I finally get around to showing more industrial then you will see this implemented on some of the "vacant" lots. It's beginning to look really interesting.

Hawkeye9: Thanks Hawk... really appreciate you stoppin' in and dropping a note.

north country dude: Glad you found them. I really like the appearance of them and they help to break up the grid look a little. As for the electric power, it's located over in the industrial zone and transmitted under water to the residential/commercial side. I never use the high tention wires unless I really have too and then only until development overtakes them. I did download the high-tension lines some time ago but will probably not use them. LOL... I found the sunken ships last week. Unfortunately they are way too big for the small rivers I have, but you can be sure I will use them when I have a seaport town... next CJ I guess Thanks for the tip on the R$$$. I managed to get everything into balance now and all the "no work" zots are gone.

Now for some really big news...

A major real estate developer has come into town and acquired a major super block for the development of a new regional shopping center. 

BTW... I am a real estate developer in R/L and when I created the infrastructure I looked at the site and said... WOW... I wish I could find a parcel like this in real life. If I had, then what you see is one possible approcah I would take to develop it out... given the game limitations of course.

The super block is bound on four sides by major roads with extensive frontage along Gemini River Valley Freeway. The site has large avenues bordering the other three sides. 

Twin River's Parkway is the major East/West route through Twin Rivers and links the industiral zones to the east with the recreation island to the west. In between is middle and upper residential developments. 

Franklin Boulevard heads north directly into downtown Twin Rivers while Blane's Avenue is an alternate route to the recreation Island.

As in R/L, regional malls add tremendous value to the surrounding real estate and most developers today create and develop these "out parcels" themselves. In the past they would only develop the shopping center but soon realized that other developers were buying up the surrounding farm lands and making a killing on speculation and development around the center.

In this case, I will be developing all of the surrounding out parcels myself and take advantage of this real estate play.

Here's the basic development thus far...

The road circulation has been laid in and tied into the surrounding infrastructure along with the surface parking facilities. The center has been placed in the center with good exposure to the surrounding roads.

This image shows the parceling I have used to start the zoning and out building placements...

This took about 3-hours or so to get laid out and setup. I am about to start applying some zoning and will turn on the game to see what develops. The center will create about 1600 $$ jobs so residential needs to develop quickly to feed this monster. Also, the Sherryton Hotel provides another 500 $$ jobs so little sims need to start moving in soon. 

BTW... the R$$ single family now located across the freeway will be redeveloped with mid-rise R$$ to feed this beast.

Stay tune for further development at Twin River's Shopping Center...

I would love to here from you and sincerely appreciate any constructive advise.

Have Fun...

[jacqulina 162]

very nice shopping area my friend.i think your work so far is quite realistic.

too late my hands were all over the cookies lol

[cifa 7]

congratulations it all looks beautiful from the farms to your nice residential areas

definitely looking forward to see more

[antsel 841]

The mall looks great, and I really like how you've planned ahead on what's going in. I hope it develops the way you want.

And thank you very much for your explanation on how you make those river banks look so realistic. I am going to get some of the ploppable flora you were talking about, and I'll give it a try. I'll let you know how it turned out.

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Nicely done. Perhaps some restaurants or shops along the perimeter to finish it off?

[dfnva 34]

Wow, you're very knowledgable about real estate and such as a real estate developer. So far the landscaping around the mall is just great with the lake and I like how you've got lots of roundabouts and plenty of parking. I think you've got some good ideas about what to surround the mall with. Interestingly, it is this kind of thinking that is being used to resurrect a lot of decaying malls, like Springfield Mall in Springfield, VA.... they're going to tear down some of the mall and surround it with tons of expensive apartments and new office buildings as well as outdoor parks.

You say that a mall is a boom to local property values, etc., when it is built. What happens then if a mall is the cause of declining property values, does that translate to the surrounding areas as well?

LOL Sorry about the long post, I just find the cycles of suburban growth interesting.... first the downtown decays as people go to the suburbs, then people go to the suburbs as those inner suburbs decay, etc.

-Dan

[SirUnger 13]

Really nice shopping center! I love the pics and can't wait to see more.

[SounderBruce 173]

The mall looks great!

[danielcote 9]

Wow I'm impressed this is very well planned out. Say is that a mall?

[rklesc 0]

Well... I think I am finally ready to introduce the City of Twin Rivers...

but first, lets reply to a few folks that were kind enough to leave a note behind during their travels...

Jacqulina: As always, thanks for stopping by and for the kind words. I hope you washed your hands first...

CIFA: Glad you liked the farms and residential work thus far. I hope you will enjoy the industrial with this update and the retail update in the near future. The residential will follow after that.

selles: You are most certainly welcome and let me know when you have gotten the knack of the floral plops... hmm... sounds disgusting actually. Let's rewind and try over. Let me know when you have mastered the floral textures...

Schulmanator: I am actually hoping for much more with the mall development... stay tuned.

dfnva: Malls run through cycles like everything else and the property values generally will follow suit. They fall in and out of favor, especially in Dubai where the latest flavor of the month is the big attraction. The US is actually going through an anti-mall sort of episode as people long for the great outdoors once again. Placemaking, the art of creating spaces for people, is the current direction.

SirUnger: Thanks, took a while to get the placement right. I hope that it will develop within the game properly.

ComputerGuy890100: Thanks CG... stay tuned for the next retail update in a couple of days... as I cross fingers.

danielcote: Thanks Dan... yeppers, a regional mall with all the bells and whistles... I hope.

Now for the industrial update...

The industrial area has gone through a zenith, a decline and now a resurrection as I tried to get the balance right.

Here are some pics on the resurrected industrial park... emphasis on the park.

A wet bottom storm water retention basin to ensure we don't flood during heavy rains...

An old cemetary and church were over taken by industrial development as the city grew to the East...

Freight traffic is heavy on the roads and the rails...

We are sensitive to the river's edge... trying to be eco-friendly...

Some workers take a lunch break and pickup a quick game in a vacant lot...

Is that some new construction getting started???

The industrial has been a bit of a pain and a surprise overall. I was expecting to develop much more industrial and have actually done half what I thought I would probably need.

Right now I am sitting at a population of about 44k with total jobs of about 20k and no zots. Quite puzzling. The breakdown is about 11k in commercial and 9k in industrial. Far less than expected.

Oh well... hope you liked what I have done to the place...

Levae a note and give me your constructive comments... they would be warmly received.

As always.... have fun...

[danielcote 9]

This is nice. Id like to see that industry eventualy turn into strips of CO$$ and CO$$$ and C$$$ and C$$ Awsome!

[SounderBruce 173]

The industrial area is thriving!

[edmonton_stinks 5]

Wow, a zenith, decline, and resurrection. Just like real life!...at least in the recession busting cities.