Episode 4 - First fire department in 50000 years
So if a building were to ignite the entire city would burn...
- TheNobleGoon
Episode 4
Christmas season was still alive while this part of the Magnasanti diary was written and this is perhaps why things got a little lazy in New Magnasanti. Everyone, me included, was just relaxing. One thing I know for sure (and happily share with you) is that New Magnasanti Sims have got a taste of white, carefree Christmas, despite all the wrong and scary that surrounds them.
(Also, this is the only cheat I intend to use - two "Winter Wonderland" parks, which normally does not happen in-game)
We can slowly resume our work on the city. Bit by bit. One of the things I haven't examined yet is the petitioner queue. I guess it has to be long...
Ok, let's get the red tape flowing again, I open up the petitioner window and this is what I get:
Hm, at least some of the advisors are smiling...
Quite a lot of remarks/suggestions/death threats. Some are really valid, while others are not. Worthy of note is the fact that, coincidentally, the most important issues have been listed first - lack of hospitals, schools, parks and an overwhelming feeling of senselessness. These are the most burning petitioner issues, conveniently placed on top of the list. Looks like me and my Sims are generally on the same page.
In case you're wondering, I'd like to show you at least some of the messages that I have received. For instance, I haven't seen this one in a long while:
I'm not even sure if it's English anymore...
Hmmm... This makes me wonder of what use all these libraries actually are. I'm afraid the word "cat" is spelled with eleven orthographic mistakes around here... Don't even mention grammar... I may not be a native speaker, but man...! Looks like comrade Mao was right when he said that "To read too many books is harmful", because all these libraries seem not to be doing much!
Oh. At least one woman around here seems to be literate and has a perfectly good point. Luckily, we have our firefighter stations to help us out. 
More parks will also do the job, so this issue is already being taken care of!
Ummm. What can I say... I burst with laughter (plus a classic "coffee spray") upon reading this. Sometimes, I just can't help the feeling that the "Society for the Excessively Cultured" son de verdad las paletas. A marina. In a city without a drop of surface water. Way to go ma'am. Way to go.
What is it that you say? "Our waterways?" "Renowned guests arriving in splendid seacraft?" I bet these are "splendid spacecraft" that you have actually seen...
I guess the (mental) health in New Magnasanti is even worse than I thought at first... I'll have to take a closer look at this issue. And fast!
Whew. Hearing out the petitioners might be helpful in a mayor's work but it is an exhausting chore as well. Especially when you are up against silly constituents. With that in mind, let's put the paperwork aside for a while and take care of more pressing issues. There is a very important matter we should see into. Something that you might be keenly interested in...
Shall we take a look at the crime charts? Hmm? Hmm?
Here's how the situation looks like in this episode:
Let's compare it to how the things were last time:
This, ladies and gentleman, means that the crime has been cut almost by half. And all this by "just" establishing an effective correctional system.
Needless to say, it proves the theory that prisons indeed do play a vital role in maintaining the order in a city. I think this is actually comparable to how recycling centers reduce the amount of garbage, or how railways relieve the traffic burden.
The "miracle" which has just happened proves, again, how all the relatively small things are only noticed on a grand scale. Probably, you wouldn't get quite as much of an effect in a 15k resident city as you get when doing the same thing in the 5.7mln New Magnasanti. This city is an interesting testing grounds for various buildings, theories and mechanisms and it doesn't take that much time to get to the results, whether good or bad.
I'm really happy that the crime has been cut down and that my instincts were correct. The rest of the crime probably stems from a myriad of other problems this city has and I hope that all of them can effectively be solved in time.
But in order to perform other miracles like that, I need to have a free mind. I can't be bothered by all those petitioners. Some help in brainstorming and targeting for better, more effective solutions, could be helpful.
I heard there are private companies who are willing to offer help and advice to mayors in distress. Since New Magnasanti's charter allows to hire commercial contractors for advisory roles, I happily invited one of them to set up the shop in my city. I even gave them a nice parcel and helped them build their new headquarters. Bah, I even took 'em a picture:
Just a step away from the subway station!
On our first discussion, the VC experts provided me with a very concise and brief advice...
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it?"
I have to admit this is true on many levels in New Magnasanti.
One of the things I won't even bother with is the water system. You've seen it. An outstanding grid that needs no improvements.
Another such item is the subway system, which covers the entire city. It could perhaps use a few tweaks and connections. It only runs in looong, continuous "V"s that don't intersect with each other. Of course, it doesn't mean the system deserves to be bulldozed or something - on the contrary. Just through-connected a bit.
Just to let you know, I am colorblind. Green, yellow - all the same. 
And one more thing... the commercial demand. I think I may actually cave in and let the commerce grow as it pleases...
I specifically mention this, because I've been trying to nudge the developers to rebuild and renovate some of the residential areas. However, due to a zero R demand, there is hardly any will for that. Bulldozing already existing buildings cannot help, because there is not enough "momentum" for any new buildings to rise.
Therefore, there are only two ways in which this can be achieved. One of them is the "same old, same old" type of thing - granting commercial developers enough land to construct the buildings and businesses the city needs. Theoretically, this could kickstart a search for new employees which, in turn, will need new homes. This way, some of the existing buildings will probably be replaced by nicer, more elegant homes.
Another way is to stimulate the "urban renewal" through the taxes. Raising the residential taxes to some outrageous levels, causing new abandonments. This could give me a chance to remove some of the dilapidated buildings. And once the taxes return to normal and Simtizens move back in, nicer apartments are sure to shoot up into the sky.
Hard to tell which one's it gonna be... Maybe a combination of both? I should probably mention that this is only an aesthetic change. There won't be any bad or good things coming from the fact that a grey high-rise is transformed into a proud, marble-white tower (except for the tax income of course). This will not solve New Magnasanti's problems. But, I feel this is a right thing to do... Art and aura-wise.
I guess this means... welcome back commerce?
I'll wait a few weeks or months for the new development to take root... aaaand, I will also increase the residential taxes a bit... I promised you a screenshot of the current budget anyway.
In the meantime, I plan to close down all the unneeded prisons that are scattered around the city. Yep, I was not entirely honest with you - I actually placed more than the initial 25 in order to speed up the reeducation process.
Believe it or not, most of these prisons are currently completely empty, just few months after experiencing a massive influx of thieves, crooks and other cutthroats. Not to worry - in the other cities I've built, I actually noticed that once a prison "recycles" all outstanding criminals, there just won't be another "wave" of them coming... unless you really ignore the problem. This is why it is perfectly safe to close down any empty prisons one may have if the city is no longer expanding. In fact, the things in New Magnasanti look so good that I can even close some of the jails which belong to the "penal colony"! More will follow.
Well, I must say I am pretty satisfied with the crime reduction, which was (is?) the key point of our today's "meeting". Other elements might be much harder to improve, but not impossible to do. Health and education will be a real challenge... Who knows... I might even be forced to create "hospital villages" or "educational camps" in much the same way I did with jails. Could be a lot of trouble but should be fun too. I look forward to this work.
I hope you had fun reading today's episode and I also hope you'll stick around for the upcoming ones. Have another look at New Magnasanti. Not to many changes in the urban landscape this time, I admit.
-
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