“Now who here likes a good story about a bridge?”

[Board_Marshal 104]

City: Rusted Bridge

Founded: April 7^th, 2013

 

     An often silent stretch of North East Intercity Avenue 45 (NE ICA 45) gently bends its way through a sparsely forested plot of land which rests comfortably in the arch of the Pepper River and just North of the Krackle Plateau Mountains.  Decades ago the now peaceful plains were full of activity– oil, coal, and ore extraction machinery mined the flat fields barren, depleting them of their underlying contents which the terrain itself had little use for.   

 

     A short red bridge made of steel, wood, and concrete had been erected over a shallow portion of the Pepper River to facilitate the construction of a railway bridge.  There was little use for the ancillary crossing once the train bridge was completed and it had become largely unused, at least for heavy duty purposes.  Miners and Roughnecks often squatted there for lunch watching jealously as debris drifted past them lazily.  Occasionally a long distance traveler, after pulling off of the avenue, would make their way up onto the bridge as a means of stretching their legs during the dull stretches between destinations.  Perhaps the most common sights were of the limbs of casual fisherman dangling over the edge waiting for a twitching line signaling an unlucky fish.

 

     Although the reasons for the relatively informal foundation of Rusted Bridge are as varied as the personalities of its earliest inhabitants, it is perhaps most likely that they share heritage and memories of having spent time on the short red bridge made of steel, wood, and concrete.

 

 

 

 

Early one morning, while presiding over a fresh pot of coffee a the local doughnut hut the "regulars" quickly took-up the now almost daily conversation topic of all the "new people" who were buying land and moving into the area.  While it was nothing personal the number was beginning to strain the bare-bones infrastructure and utility services available in the area.  There was also the matter of a fairly informal method of securing proper payment for water and electricity usage and what you could call "road maintenance".  So it was decided a petition would be taken from house to house in favor of incorporating the area into a town and because the most remarkable landmark in the area had been the old, red, rusted bridge made of steel, wood, and concrete the town would be called: Rusted Bridge.  The ~700 inhabitants of voting age overwhelming signed the petition in favor of incorporating the area and following an affirmative vote, the appropriate documents were filed with the county and state and the town of Rusted Bridge was founded. 

 

-The "Doughnut Hut" in the foreground

 

 

-Wind power was the only realistic means of providing power to the small rural population since all of the oil and coal had been removed decades ago.  It was a facility left by the industrial mining and drilling companies.  The employees were residents of the area and stayed to keep the turbine running to provide power to the lights of the ICA 45 and also send power to the railway company when it was needed.

 

 

Shortly after incorporating Rusted Bridge an architect was hired to design a city hall and construction was initiated quickly following approval by the town council.  The mayor and city council would have offices there along with various town department managers.  But more than anything it represented a physical manifestation of the solidarity of the citizens of Rusted Bridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

-An aerial view of the dirt roads that remained, left behind following the big industrial companies' drilling and mining operations once they were finished decades ago.  The property plots demarcated by the roads were essentially adopted by those moving to the area.  The wind turbine plant was also a vestige of the evacuated industry.  Until recently the turbine provided electricity to the ICA 45's street lights and the rail company drew some power as well. 

 

 

-The RCI map gives you a general idea of where the residencies and small business tended to place themselves. 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

Most of the relatively new inhabitants of the town of Rusted Bridge worked in the mom and pop stores and chain eateries such as the Doughnut Hut.  However, a non-insignificant number of longer term residents were either well educated in the industrial arts or were masters of their respective technical trades.  Coincidently, many of them were retired or laid off as the drilling and mining operation wound down.  Their knowledge and passion for creativity and production combined with some of the business savvy experience (and social networking with capital investment types) of the newer Rusted Bridge transplants prompted the opening of several new industrial companies.

 

 

And since there were little need for the goods produced a trading and logistics distribution center was established nearby.  It made sense with easy access to ICA 45.

 

 

 

Unfortunately the city council only approved of the development fairly far away from the residential/commercial areas and virtually on top of the sole sewage treatment pipe.

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

     As the town expanded so did the variety of its inhabitants.  What was once small area of retiree’s, empty-nesters, outdoorsmen, loners, and rural and nature enthusiasts was now suddenly a town bustling with limitless varieties of people from all walks of life.   The rapid migration of so many individuals coming to Rusted Bridge was the result of multiple factors but none so great or as common as the availability of jobs at the local industries and/or trade distribution center.  It was only a matter of time before the healthcare needs of the town could no longer be managed by the local aged “house-call” doctor and occasional emergency life-flights. Coincidently, following a recent trip back to the old red bridge made of steel, wood, and concrete a young physician, whose father used to bring him to there fish, decided that the big city’s frantic pace wasn't for him and pulled up stakes and moved to Rusted Bridge and set up Red’s Health Clinic near city hall.

 

 

     Funded directly in large part by the local industries (at the behest of the investors) that were in need of the assurance that their capital investments wouldn’t be total losses in the advent of a fire, a single engine firehouse was built and a volunteer fire department formed.  For the most part it could handle smaller residential and commercial fires and in more serious cases keep the conditions from getting out of control until better equipped nearby municipalities could respond.  Although the building and fire engine were funded by industry the R.B.F.D. was still a town entity paid for on an ongoing basis by the taxpayers.

 

 

-Red's Clinic, Rusted Bridge City Hall, and the R.B.F.D.Engine House #1, basically the center of town

 

 

-State of the town

 

 

 

 

[galacticwarrior 9]

 VERY Beautiful city and like how the bridge is involved in the story.

The story-telling is also first class! I really enjoyed it.

[BLANKBLANK 4,414]

Wow! That's one amazing use of the cool filter and I like the uniformity of your streets and those perfectly 90 degree's curves!

[Board_Marshal 104]

@galacticwarrior:  Adopting the narrative approach for the first time is strange for me but I'm glad it isn't falling completely flat.  It is my opinion that the limited size of the city plot more or less forced me to approach the CJ as a meticulous study of the evolution the city rather than rushing to fill the map to build towering skylines.  I've also found the economic management of the city to be even more easy (than before) when I move slowly, adding or upgrading strips of roads one at a time, adding or increasing the density of only 3-10 buildings at a time, etc.  I am able to hold off on upgrading the bridge but as the city grows I'm not sure I'm going to be able to stop myself from upgrading it to make it more visually appealing.

 

@Ln X

Oh the curves, lol!  I'm very OCD about them being perfect which usually causes me to do a lot of bulldozing until they're just right.  I am having a load of fun with the filters, as you can tell.  I've found each filter seems to have an optimal set of conditions during which to employ for taking pics.  The time of the day, where the sun and moon are in the sky (or behind terrain), and the evolution of the city (the colors of the high rises vs the "townish" buildings seem to use somewhat different and some colors are more or less prominent) really dictates when I use a certain filter.  I prefer my images to be as "realistic" as possible but my favorite filter is the teal and orange, especially when the trees are orange in the fall.

[Board_Marshal 104]

A bond measure for the construction of a grade school was unanimously passed by the town council.  It was critically important for public health (and sanity) that there be a local school because the necessity for everybody get up  early to ensure the children caught the bus to a neighboring township was making everybody cranky.  An unintended consequence of building a local school was that the Doughnut Hut did see a decline in early morning customers.

 

 

 

 

Outrageous!... was the amount of money the town was going to have to pay for continued trash pick-up from the neighboring township's trash Co..  So a bidding process notice was sent to all known regional garbage companies for a long term contract and exclusive renewal rights if the company would build a trash handling facility nearby.  After a three round bidding process it was Rank Trash Co. who won and months later Rusted Bridge residents started to roll out brand new trash bins on Tuesday and Friday mornings.

 

 

 

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

     "I am tired of my SC outlook mailbox fullness preventing me from sending any new e-mails" exclaimed the mayor of Rusted Bridge.  Why is his mailbox all jammed up?, there are two problems: 1.) the citizenry are now taking issue with our total dependency on regional sheriffs and intercity avenue law enforcement for crime management and, 2.) nobody seems to want a police station located near their property and there is otherwise no room left within the current town boundaries. 

     In what is a first of many big steps for Rusted Bridge the town council voted 6-3 in favor of zoning a new subdivision with the intent of including a police station, some commercial zoning (~20%) and the rest allocated to residential.  Two of the dissenting councilmen objected on the grounds that the new commercial and residential would be largely geared towards medium wealth when there was plenty of interest in increasing the land value of within the existing town limits.  However, 4 of the 6 who voted in the affirmative of the new zoning measure only agreed because the higher wealth zoning would help pay for the rapidly growing services the town was providing.  So if the new subdivision wasn't geared to medium wealth the 2 extra votes would have been nullified by the withdrawal of support by the other 4.

     Finally, the regional transportation commission has provided permission and funding for an offshoot from ICA 45.  It is yet unclear how useful the expansion will be but if Rusted Bridge continues to grow at this rate it is doubtful the infrastructure in place will be able to effectively manage the volume of commuters. 

 

-Aerial view following the completion of the roadwork for Rusted Bridge's new subdivision: Pepper Meadows

 

 

-Fancy New R.B.P.D. precinct #1

 

 

-Rusted Bridge proper in the foreground and Pepper Meadows in the background, notice the small ICA 45 offshoot.

 

 

-No idea why the school has all of its lights on every night.

 

 

-Another aerial view from a different angle and with most of the properties purchased and ICA 45's still small branch.  A road upgrade project was also approved and you can see a few of the roads have been upgraded to concrete

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

-Red's Clinic has expanded to service the growing town
 

 
-The BBQ pit next to the clinic was replaced with a nice sitting pool for patients and families while they wait.
 

 
-The commercial block of Pepper Meadows has a nice medium wealth part with attached sitting pool to encourage shoppers to linger, spend more!
 

 
-The branch of ICA 45 continues to be expanded- not quite sure what's going on there.
 

 
-Power, water, wealth maps show the layout of the town so far with a bit more clarity.
 

 
 
 
 

 
-Some data on Rusted Bridge so far, August of year 1
 

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

It was impressive how quickly the Pepper Meadow's property rights were purchased.  In fact the rate of growth shocked the regional real estate companies who immediately knew there was great opportunity for Rusted Bridge... and their own wallets.  A comprehensive report with growth projections was prepared for the mayor and town council.  This was shared in an open meeting with the citizenry and despite some minor disagreements the consensus was there was still room for comfortable growth.  In a 6-3 vote the development of four more subdivisons was approved (all low density).  The regional transportation department also committed further funds to expanding the extension of ICA 45 to accommodate the additional projected traffic.

 

-Roadwork for the Krackle Trails Subdivision 

 

 

 

-The R.B.F.D. receives engine #2 not a minute too soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

-Rusted Bridge K-8 expands to keep pace with the growing numbers of families with children moving into the area.

 

 

 

"Mayor, we simply need more power" exclaimed the chair of the chamber of commerce who happened to be flanked by the chief engineer of the wind turbine power plant and the town manager in charge of industrial relations.  Luckily great deal of revenue had been generated by the added medium wealth commercial and residential properties as part of the Pepper Meadows expansion.  In a 8-1 vote the town council approved the dismantling of the old turbine and purchasing one of the newer, top-of-the-line, and larger power generating wind turbines.
 

 

 

 

-Roadwork for Plateau Point Subdivision is completed along with expansion of ICA 45

 

 

-Rusted Bridge ISD expands again and adds more buses to handle the increasing distance residents live from the school.

 

 

 

-R.B.F.D. adds a 3rd fire engine to ensure continued public safety.

 

 

 

[galacticwarrior 9]

I'm speechless.

I take my hats off to you sir!

[89James89 1,169]

Looks really good and I'm enjoying the whole slow development approach to it.

 

Looking forward to more.

 

James

[Dashafrash. 34]

*Proceeds to wipe tears from eyes.

[BLANKBLANK 4,414]

You've made an art-form out of low-density small towns! Nice one!

[Board_Marshal 104]

@galacticwarrior: I appreciate the gesture.

 

@89James89: Not having saved games means you can never go back an reminisce about where the city has been.  This screenshot story method seemed to be the best way to document the evolution of my city.  I aim to take pictures from the same positions as the city develops and post them together so people can easily see the evolution.

 

@神奈川沖浪裏 : Tears, did you just eat some spicy food?  Just kidding.  But really, this city makes me cry as well because playing at this pace is painful.  I have to switch over to other cities so I can satiate my need to just drop roads and zones as fast as they will fill up.  It feels so good!

 

@Ln X: I do like the small town look that SC2013 provides but R.B. has a future which is looking up... in density

[Board_Marshal 104]

-Finished the roadwork for the subdivision of Rusty Plains.  There are rumors that this will be the first area to have medium density housing and maybe even a cool medium density commercial property.  Well, that's the rumor on the tennis club's courts anyway.
 

 
-Rank Trash Co. added a trash incinerator which almost made the regional EPA bureau chief's head explode.
 

 
-Bridgeway Crossing is the last of the approved sub-divisions to be added east of ICA 45.  Because there is a persistent need for low wealth workers and with the potential for higher density industry moving into the area it is situated in the shadows of the wind turbines and neighboring the outer reaches of the industrial area.  Unfortunately the wind used to blow due East (out of the West) but it has since shifted to blow more East by North East.  Bureaucrat's from the regional EPA office have been in contact with the medical staff at Red's Clinic and have asked to be notified of unusual patterns of illness originating from Bridgeway.
 

 

-Sometimes it's difficult to discern what's going on in R.B. from the zoomed in photos and emphasis on certain events so here is some data and visuals.
May of year 2


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

-Red's Clinic has more or less reached it maximum growth potential.  If Rusted Bridge continues to grow at this rate a new clinic will be necessary.  The question is: will Dr. Ben Stone open another clinic or are there competitors ready to push their way into the market?  We shall see.
 

 
-Expanding the physical structure of the R.B. I.S.D. grade school to accommodate more desks did little to help as there is currently a teacher shortage.  The school board has approved a 5,000 simoleon signing bonus for teachers who are hired within the next 3 months.
 

[Board_Marshal 104]

-"What do you think mayor?" said the town's urban planner Mr. Tidy "the recent survey indicated the citizens weren't likely to support additional subdivisions... and with town council elections coming soon nobody is going to push for further outward expansion". 
-"Your absolutely right Mr. Tidy" said Mayor Planck "but a density restriction was not specified". 
-"You know it is regional policy that infrastructure upgrades must occur first, then building density permits may be issued" said Mr. Tidy "and you need council approval for infrastructure funding". 
-"Yes" said the mayor "but I don't intend to use city transportation funding for the upgrades, I'm going to add the cost of the roadwork into the permits for the higher density zoning".  "Sure it'll piss off the construction and development companies but they've been making money hand over fist.  Plus, I have a feeling nobody will care too much if these big businesses have to pay a little more, especially with the kind of money they can rake in with the larger structures." 
-"That will make you quite popular with the people" said Mr. Tidy. 
- "It will indeed" said Mayor Planck.
 
-Rusty Plains receives the first of Rusted Bridge's medium density residential housing permits and work begins immediately
 

 

 

 

 
-Local industries quickly overhaul their facilities to maximize density to remain competitive. The have little choice because industrial zoning remains very limited.


 

 

-Pepper Meadows, Rusted Bridge's oldest subdivision outside of R.B. proper also benefits from some increased residential density structures.  Did I mention the Mayor's mansion is there as well?

 

 

 

-The first medium density commercial building, what could it be?

 

 

-A movie theater!

 

 

-And of course we need MORE POWER!  There isn't much room left for clean power.  Not sure if R.B. should go dirty or not.

 

 

 

 

[BLANKBLANK 4,414]

Three entries in one day! Wow!

 

I liked a couple of the shots in the last entry, it seems your winding streets have really payed off now that medium density is coming in.

[Jabaskunda 5]

Awesome!

[Board_Marshal 104]

-More photos of Bridgeway crossing, really packing in the workers now. (where did all the idealism go?)

 

-Medium density, low wealth pops up in Rusted Bridge proper overlooking the railway.  Not exactly the quietest of places to live but what are you going to do?

 

-Unfortunately more of everything means more sewage.  Pipe #1 was overloaded and Bridgeway residents were complaining about the smell due to stagnant plumbing so pipe #2 was constructed.  Similar to the wind power plant there isn't much room left for expansion.  Tough choices are ahead.

 

-In more pleasant news the Jack "Pipes" Finney Memorial Library was recently dedicated in Rusty Plains near the movie theater.  Maybe all the teenagers hanging out by the theater will actually read something for a change (probably not though).

 

[Yaffle 29]

Is he called Mayor Planck because he is a constant?

 

Very much enjoying this blog!

[Luiz P. Romanini 132]

I think i've might found my favourite SC2013 City Journal!!!

 

Great job!

[Cob92 360]

This is simply an amazing CJ! I love the slow, organic pace of growth here, and the transformation from podunk country town to bustling suburban city. Is the original bridge still there?

[BLANKBLANK 4,414]

Eek! Looks like Rustic Bridge is losing its identity! I also wonder if this CJ will be covering cities outside of Rustic Bridge, I mean the place has no resources to extract and should in the near future it become a fully developed town, I wonder how else it could develop?

 

But for what it's worth you chartered the organic development of a city better than anyone else has in a 2013 CJ, you've even given me a few ideas...

[Board_Marshal 104]

-What is likely the last ICA 45 expansion.

 

 

Mr. Tidy: "These are very powerful people and there's no doubt that we need them in our city"

Mayor Planck: "You know there isn't popular support for it in the community so how am I supposed to convince the councilmen that this isn't political suicide?"

Mr. Tidy: "Council elections are over and with 2 years before another election it might as well be a lifetime.  What I mean is, the vote will be forgotten, especially with the tax revenue and vital jobs these people will fill when they move into town.  Let's not forget that you and several councilmen had quite a few "big" private donors to your campaigns and if there is a better way to reward your supporters then show me.  All you have to do is take the angle of increasing the tax base, job growth, economic activity, and you'll win over enough of the citizens that when the council votes the popular sentiments will be at least 50:50."

Mayor Planck: "I knew there was a good reason why I appointed you to head the town and urban planning department."

Mr. Tidy (under his breath): "just one?"

 

-In a close vote, 5 to 4, the council approved the sale of land for the development of The Estates at Pepper Woods in some of, no, the best land in the rapidly growing city.  As predicted the mayoral support helped improve the polling on the high wealth expansion, data showed a 62% favorable, 30% unfavorable, 8% undecided the week before the voting, up from 46% favorable, 44% unfavorable, 10% undecided.

 

 

 

 

 

 

-A little vintage photo filter, you know, because it's soooo classy   

 

 

 

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

@Yaffle: I thought that a Mayor Plank (like wood planks of a bridge) was too campy so I went with the more highbrow Planck; clearly you're no information slouch yourself.

 

@L.P. Romanini: I appreciate the interest, I'll continue to try and keep it.

 

@Cobhris96: The old red, rusty bridge made of steel, wood, and concrete is still there.  I'll make sure to take a pic of it (from it) and pair it with an older pic so you can have a before and after

 

@Ln X: I agree; R.B. is no longer the little town from long ago but I'm really looking forward to some of the challenges which are coming.  I selected the region for its 5 city, all connected limit, that way it can't get out of hand.  However, I've not yet decided how I'm going to approach the other city tiles.  I don't think I have the patience to catalog (as closely) another city like this.  Also, some of the issues with intercity play still exist so I was hoping I could focus on R.B. until at least patch 2.0.  For now I've still got plenty to do with good old R.B..

[BLANKBLANK 4,414]

The third from last picture hast to be the best God darn picture I've ever seen from SC5!

[Board_Marshal 104]

Late one night at Big Tony's Italian Bistro and Wine Cellar.

 

Mr. Hand: "Look Mr. Mayor, I know there is a great deal of sentimental value attached to the R.B. wind facility but unless you want to bulldoze half of Bridgeway for more turbines you've no choice but to consider alternative options.  Sure, importing power from the neighboring township's power plant seems like a reasonable option but you've seen the news reports of how inconsistent they can be."

Mayor Planck: "Yes I am aware."

Mr. Hand: "And don't let the green'ies push you into building another wind or god forbid, a solar facility someplace else near the city.  Do you really want to sacrifice that prime real estate next to Pepper River?"

Mayor Planck: "Obviously not."

Mr. Hand: "It makes no sense to go with oil because you don't need that amount of power and who are we kidding, you ain't going nuclear."

Mayor Planck: "That's where Firestone comes in, right?  Just the right amount of power with a small footprint, is that right?"

Mr. Hand: "We've already surveyed the industrial zoning and there is enough space next to the sewage pipes for a new coal fired power facility.  Nobody else wants to build there so I can't see how this isn't a win-win situation."

Mayor Planck: "Well this seems like it's too good to be true so where is the catch?"

Mr. Hand: "We'll pay for the structure and handle the regional EPA.  The catch is that you give Firestone, Inc. a 5 year tax break, say... ~25% cut in rate, and we get to be your exclusive coal supplier for those 5 years as well."

Mayor Planck: "You know I have to take this through city council... but... I think I can persuade them with the right amount of leverage.  Have the proposed contract on my desk on Monday.  My private lawyer will look it over just to be sure."

Mr. Hand: "So we have a deal?"

Mayor Planck: "Deal."

 

The two gentlemen finished their drinks, rose from there seats, shook hands, and departed.

 

-8 months later the Firestone, Inc Coal Plant at Rusted Bridge begins to supply power

 

 

 

-Goodbye R.B. Wind & Power Co.

 

 

 

[Board_Marshal 104]

I've decided to carry this over into the CJ section because the number of pics in this thread was becoming a bit unwieldy.  Below are the links to my two posts thus far today.  Enjoy.

 

https://community.simtropolis.com/journal/4344/entry-20546-the-mayor-and-the-estates/

 

https://community.simtropolis.com/journal/4344/entry-20547-rbfd-chex-urgent-care-clinic/

 

The link below is particularly cool.  I have taken current photos and posted them in pairs with the original pics taken when the city was very young.

 

https://community.simtropolis.com/journal/4344/entry-20553-before-after-of-rb-photo-comaprisons/