Experimental skyscraper districts

[Terring 6,476]

Originally posted by: koolkalangit would be nice if there was a little more variance in the "open areas" -ie, lakes, ponds, recreational areas, etc.quote>

If i put more green, it would be not just nice my friend but a truly ecological utopia. I will test it

"I think there are a lot of people in this community who have forgotten that."

I also notice this  . Just don't forget some of my previous messages...

"Don't forget that we are talking about a game, not a real world simulator, that allows you to build anything you want. Besides a futuristic city in Simcity 4 is much more realistic than a Fun City in Simcity Societies."

"If i want reality, i turn on the television and watch the news

."

"Maybe my project look unrealistic, but don't forget that Simcity is a game ;-)"

[GlobexCo 33]

Good idea, but the skyscrapers in the last (SC4) photo are too "regular" (green square, palace square, green square,....)

If you want a truly ecological utupia you have to build many canals and hills (like hanging gardens!!!) and also some strange and full of green palaces

[Soulchaser 1]

I like the idea, but I wouldn't build it that "square". more in an organic way.

[yamaneko 2]

To save money, the spaces between skyscrapers can be a mix of small parks, fountains, public transport, ploppable art (e.g. the Mayor's statue) with lots of trees.  3x3 parks are more efficient at using money than smaller parks, but trees have no monthly maintenance expense. 

[bigthing 35]

Love the idea, but i think thjere should be less space between the skyscrapers

Where did you get the duel network (el rail/road) stations?

It is kinda awkward creating a space for stations

Like You said the idea of sim city is that YOU can do whatever YOU want. YOU can create virtualy (litirally LOL) any kind of city you want.

[Terring 6,476]

"If you want a truly ecological utupia you have to build many canals and hills (like hanging gardens!!!) and also some strange and full of green palaces"

Canals? I'm not interest about canals but i'm sure that it will be a great area for the skyscrapers, something between Venice and New York . Hills? What exactly do you mean?

"... more in an organic way."

Organic? Can you explain it?

"... with lots of trees."

Trees!! Of course!!

"Where did you get the duel network (el rail/road) stations?

It is kinda awkward creating a space for stations

"

http://www.bripizza.net/sc4/

From this side you can find plenty of addons, like these:

El rail over road (N.A.M.) station at curves

El rail over road (N.A.M.) station

Elevated heavy rail (N.A.M.) station

Heavy rail under road (N.A.M.) station

[Cupcake Carly 12]

nah, they didnt forget, some of us just didn't read the part that this planning is for the purpose of playing simcity and not for real world application, i agree, in simcity this plan does look pretty neat so keep it up, im gonna experiment to see if i can find some nice combinations on my end

[Terring 6,476]

Thanks vampiregirl :-)

"im gonna experiment to see if i can find some nice combinations on my end"

Go ahead, make my day :-D

[Soulchaser 1]

the organic way means: don't build square. use a more natural and irregular ground pattern.maybe, I'll show you a pic. don't have one now.

[GlobexCo 33]

I wrote hills because... Can you remebmer some pictures of Atlantis? There was different levels, each level was taller than the level before. Your district will be more interesting with some differences in height. (I used "canal" to indicate little streams between parks)

[Terring 6,476]

the organic way means: don't build square. use a more natural and irregular ground pattern.

Something like this?

I wrote hills because... Can you remebmer some pictures of Atlantis? There was different levels, each level was taller than the level before. Your district will be more interesting with some differences in height. (I used "canal" to indicate little streams between parks)

Yes i remember it. Like this...

[diablo_del_bano 3]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadacre_City

[GlobexCo 33]

Yes, you can use the concept of different levels (with different skyscrapers, different parks and different transports)

[bigthing 35]

Thanks I was getting tired of making spaces for stations

You've been great and ill happily try out you idea 

[Soulchaser 1]

Originally posted by: terring

the organic way means: don't build square. use a more natural and irregular ground pattern.

Something like this?

quote>

Yes. and as far as it's possible to build something similar in sc4:

I just built this with some different kinds of parks & co.

the ground pattern:

[Terring 6,476]

Very nice plan Soulchaser. Personal i prefer my grid plan because it's more organized but i like the organic plan

[GlobexCo 33]

Nice picture Soulchaser, I think that making a big city like the little district will be very impressive! The grid is also very comfortable in UDI missions and very useful with traffic problems.

[rumfordfire235 1]

Can anyone tell me what program I need to build my own structures.   I tried to look but Im not sure how to word the type of program I am looking for.  TY

[Terring 6,476]

These days i'm working in a future city called Astropolis.

At this city i will test my experiment, not only for the commercial districts but also for the residential and industrial areas

[futurama2506sim 7]

Where are those towers available for download? I've seen them everywhere but I never got a link or anything like that...

[Terring 6,476]

http://www.yuhisa.com/cgi/c-board/c-board.cgi?cmd=one;no=74;id=

[cirvianum 0]

Too much open space I would say; I would build medium density offices and cs buildings on the ground level, and less roads and more pedmalls, so it haves a "Coruscant" Feeling.

But we need flying cars right now... Modders? LoL

[chris0101 8]

Lol - I too am a fan of planned cities. I prefer a grid with monorails going over them directly, a subway system underneath, and bus service provided. As the city expands, tram on road will be added.

[RedImperator 16]

Le Corbusier beat you to this idea 87 years ago: Ville Contemporaine.  The city fathers of Paris told him where to go and how to get there.  Later, American public housing agencies adopted the idea of the tower-in-the-park, and we got places like this.  The tower in the park just doesn't seem to work in the real world.

That said, with enough care, it could LOOK good and work well in SimCity 4.  Sims aren't people, after all.

[binobi 2]

The concept is very interesting and seems to have got everybody talking. I believe that this notion of "the tower in the park" was adopted by many western governments for social housing in the 50's and 60's and it doesn't seem to work in real life but we're playing a game here and so should try to construct whatever image we want of a city. How it is put together will take some experimentation and work but i think it could be done in a style that is both true to the concept and pleasing to the eye.

As mentioned above, varying what breaks up the gaps between towers will add a lot to the overall plan and varying the heights of the towers will make a big difference too. For an idea that relies so much on the visual appeal it may be easier to show what you're trying to create by using the towers you would use in a real city rather than repeating the same ones over and over.

Good work and I look forward to seeing more as you develop the idea.

[Albatross Domain 2]

I completely Agree with you in that aspect... you have to draw the line in the sand, when it comes to actuality and reality when building you're city (cities), if it takes (money) cheats to demostrate, what you are trying to accomplish, then so be it. It's also your choice if you are wanting to run real life scenarios (balance budget, control crime, congestion ... blah blah blah) its your choice too. Being that I've played with this entire series for most of my adult life... I've also used it in practical terms, of where I've lived and worked. SC4 is a game but a tool as well.

[zurrabear 20]

I like your examples in concept, though my taste would be to have either a little less open space or more irregular open spaces (and more grass!). Your idea reminds me of certain college campuses I've seen, like U. of California/Irvine, where there are a number of large buildings spread far apart in park like areas on hills connected by winding roads and footpaths. I don't mind the urban jungle, it's cool and all, but possibly like you I try to build utopia, and utopia would probably be less crowded!

And besides, this concept leaves lots of room for change, additional transit grids, etc.

[zurrabear 20]

Originally posted by: Defecto

Reminds me of the old "Bijlmer" district in Amsterdam. Planned out so well, raised avenues, pedestrian passages going under and over those roads, residential towers with parks spread out in between the towers, and el. trains & busses driving through it. It sounds like utopia, and that's how it looked in the architects impressions.

But not quite, pretty much immediately after it was completed in the 1970s it turned out to have become the benchmark ghetto of Amsterdam.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bijlmer

quote>

The US had something similar in the Pruitt-Igoe housing project near St. Louis. 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pruitt-Igoe

edit; sorry, bad link

[ROFLyoshi 1,760]

The idea is great, but I like Soulchaser's example better. I personally would surround the CBD with trees, then spawl out with densely built skyscrapers and build out to the suburbs.

[pedepy 0]

meh ... new york city might be an extreme example, but on the other end of the spectrum, it's no better. imho, skyscraper district look better when they're a bit more condensed. it's one of things i hate most about my home town's downtown area, Montreal, where the highest buildings are scathered about instead of being all located in one central location.

makes things look sparse, it degrades the skyline, and it doesnt really serve the purpose of being a 'breather' on ground level you would expect .... the downtown area will still be teaming with tight streets and busy commercial areas even if they don't rise as high.

that's just how cities grow organically. anything else just tends to look very planned, plain, bland and dead..