EffTheGrid

Magnificent!

This is hilarious!! I love the Sims name theming ---- keep them coming The models also look fantastic --- excited to use them in the game!

Thanks Cori! I usually hesitate to share unfinished projects but there are moments they just come alive and jump off the page -- I know you know that feeling Plus, sharing projects motivates me to "finish" the scenes with a greater degree of "done-ness". Appreciate the kind words. Thank you as well! I do the same thing --- it's great to see how others approach development, layout, and balancing historical accuracy with the hard limitations of the game. This is the reason I usually start with paved roads --- I wish the SAM came with draggable FA, otherwise I would do what you do. But I use roads to represent streets, one-ways, etc. when I need to... with the hope that one day they will code the pieces in that we need and I could override But for now, I really like the aesthetic of the angled roadways and haven't really noticed the pavement markings as being "off" --- I kinda play in the 20th century mostly anyway. It took me FOREVER to get the draw pattern right. I just followed the contours of the land with the roads and let the topography decide where to take the networks. Sometimes I'd mess up and go off the trail, climbing a hillside or descending a riverbank -- then it's time to go back 200 ft and turn the road to a different angle! It feels cool wondering how far sims would trail from the riverbed and set up their homes? This is the way the roads were founded where I'm from. There's an urban legend that the roads up here were Indian walking paths. Which is true! We had creekbeds that became post roads, pikes that became state routes, and every classification of road follows the local topography, or at least allows it to inform it. I'm gonna post this in the anti-grid spotlight too --- it's a quick reference for any readers who aren't familiar with the basic draw patterns for draggable FAR -- there are 2 angles provided, and they're drawn with adjacent roads in segments like this. So you start with a circle (stub), and end with a stub to complete segments. The segments are slope tolerant and generate sidewalks, lights and trees. (unlike the old ploppable FAR) so this makes development alongside them more interesting and realistic. The FAR pieces are the reason I got back into the game, and started creating cc! I love the versatility! I frequent the showcase threads but I've never found this more conceptual area before. I'll try to post more analytical content here and keep the story-based lore over at the other areas. Thank you for the enthusiasm, all!

Presenting: Hemden a work in progress Named for the area around the Hemden Creek (pun: "hemmed in by the creek") , this tile encompasses a swath containing diverse topography and essential city infrastructure. The grid is laid out with NW-SE roads for the local roads, E-W streets for local streets, and NE-SW arterials for connections to the downtown core of the city. Diagonally, middle of the map is sliced in half by 2 highways, the (unfinished junction of the) Inner Belt Parkway and the Central Artery. Take a look at how the highway has both torn apart the fabric of the city, and created new enclaves with distinct boundaries. Moving west, the inner-city. Cool to watch the buildings change. I like to see the gradual transition of density offset by the stark collision of specific building styles representing eras of construction. Below we can see the 6 Points area, with Goniffs Point Ave running orthogonally at an angle north and south. This area is a major industrial corridor, with hundreds of warehouse and commercial spaces in the district between Rosemond Avenue and the expressway. This area was inspired by parts of the outer boroughs, namely Red Hook, College Point, the areas around Newtown Creek, Greenpoint, and little pieces of Flushing. Not only is the highway a major industrial corridor, but also are the flats down by the industrial kill. 6 Points is also the main entrance into the Goniffs Point section. It's densely residential, and working class. The area spans the corners of 3 separate tiles so it's often neglected and lacks good services. And just a short float over the Hemden Creek is the historical Hemden Mill Town, now designated the historic Milltown District. Residents in this area might actually enjoy the seclusion the highways bring. Thanks to sound walls, strict local zoning rules and historical building covenants make sure their side of the creek remains relatively calm and unchanged, as the city expands all around. Old single family houses are prevalent ---- and most homes have their own yards. The "president streets" enjoy townhouse living and tight walkable blocks while "tree streets" enjoy convenient access to the Inner Parkway marginal road! The "tree streets" were originally not part of Milltown, but built later on as the "Chestnut Park" development. A scenic parkway with a wide tree-lined median was constructed down the middle of the neighborhood, called Chestnut Parkway. Many years later when the freeway was routed, the Chestnut Park alignment was chosen for several reasons: because home values here were proportionally low here at the time, the neighborhood was comparatively less densely settled than the blocks east and west. the grassy parkway provided an easy center for the route's right of way. There was much outcry from residents --- and yet, the freeways came through anyway. Still, many homes and several businesses were raised to run the highway through, and many say Chestnut Hill lost its character and identity, in its namesake tree-lined boulevard. That's the lore: really, I just tried to connect the roads as best I could. The story is inspired by real-life East Orange and Irvington NJ, and the destruction of Oraton Parkway to build the Garden State Pkwy. I will show more as the map develops! Other areas are still incomplete. Thanks for watching

Presenting: Hemden a work in progress Named for the area around the Hemden Creek, this tile encompasses a swath containing diverse topography and essential city infrastructure. The grid is laid out with NW-SE roads for the local roads, E-W streets for local streets, and NE-SW arterials for connections to the downtown core of the city. Diagonally, middle of the map is sliced in half by 2 highways, the (unfinished junction of the) Inner Belt Parkway and the Central Artery. Take a look at how the highway has both torn apart the interconnected fabric of the city, and created new enclaves with distinct boundaries. Moving west, the inner-city Here we can see the 6 Points area, with Goniffs Point Ave running orthogonally at an angle north and south. This area is a major industrial corridor, with hundreds of warehouse and commercial spaces in the district between Rosemond Avenue and the expressway. Not only is the highway a major industrial corridor, but also are the flats down by the industrial kill. This is reclaimed swampland. Land is at a premium. 6 Points is also the main entrance into the Goniffs Point section. It's densely residential, and working class. The area spans the corners of 3 separate tiles so it's often neglected and lacks good services. And just a short float over the Hemden Creek is the historical Hemden Mill Town, now designated the historic Milltown District. Residents in this area might actually enjoy the seclusion the highways bring. Thanks to sound walls, strict local zoning rules and historical building covenants make sure their side of the creek remains relatively calm and unchanged, as the city expands all around. Old single family houses are prevalent ---- and most homes have their own yards. The "president streets" enjoy townhouse living and tight walkable blocks while "tree streets" enjoy convenient access to the Inner Parkway marginal road! The "tree streets" were originally not part of Milltown, but built later on as the "Chestnut Park" development. A scenic parkway with a wide tree-lined median was constructed down the middle of the neighborhood, called Chestnut Parkway. Many years later when the freeway was routed, the Chestnut Park alignment was chosen for several reasons: because home values here were proportionally low here at the time, the neighborhood was comparatively less densely settled than the blocks east and west. the grassy parkway provided an easy center for the route's right of way. There was much outcry from residents --- and yet, the freeways came through anyway. Still, many homes and several businesses were raised to run the highway through, and many say Chestnut Hill lost its character and identity, in its namesake tree-lined boulevard. I will show more as the map develops! Other areas are still incomplete. Thanks for watching

Someone had made an exhaustive master list of all content available for each country, city, and region, tagged by location.... does anyone know what I'm talking about, or where to find it? @CorinaMarie or @Tyberius06 I'm sure one of you is aware of this ambitious project. Would love to find it to use it as a resource. Thanks!

I posted a fractional version for you.

I think it looks great --- worth your time !

Hey, it's nice to see some projects on your desk and that you're still active. Just wanted to give a shout, and say thanks again for the NYC diagonal set. All of your work is very realistic and high quality --- but those are just so useful in particular. I was wondering if you still have the model file and could cook up a corner version for us to use. It would be nice to complete the set. And you're several steps ahead of me at the moment ! I'd be really jazzed. Keep up the great work!

I agree -- I highly encourage it !

Hi - I'd just like to enter the chat and show you all how this parcel came to be developed over many years. Please excuse my lack of historical photos but I'll do my best to diagram it out, in case it's not obvious from the air. Starting from regional view, here's the area we're looking up-close at today: Grove Point Our focus is on the western side of this skinny seaside peninsula, situated between the ocean and a minor regional shipping channel. It's a few miles from the downtown and historical hub of the city, so the beachfront land was developed around the turn of the 20th century into bucolic streetcar suburbs of a bustling portside city. The eastern sliver of the peninsula is occupied by the City of Portsmouth - though the areas are very tightly knit and interdependent, residents can feel at-odds with one-another due to differences in class, geography, lifestyle and access to amenities. These are the Portsmouth Beaches - represented below are 4 distinct areas with different governing bodies, and vibes. Who can see the borders from space? Here's a closer look: There are 4 main players. From the north, there's: (The Village of) Grove Point: Centuries ago, this was a historic fishing outpost, which later turned into a desirable streetcar suburb, and later, boardwalk destination. The village was chartered before any suburban development encroached on its natural beauty, and locals enjoyed 100 years of quiet seaside life among egrets and the spray. After another 100 years of overdevelopment, the streetcars have stopped running and beachgoers turn to the more accessible Ft. Pontus beaches to the south. Now "the point" is mainly comprised of working-class residents, and retirees----they appreciate access to unspoiled beaches and a friendly downtown --- and they don't mind the lead in the pipes or the rainbow sheen on the water. Portsmouth City: Represented on the eastern-adjacent tile, this city is the industrial nexus of the Western Channel ---- it is a rail terminus and seaport hub, and residents are primarily lower-income unskilled workers. The city is more densely developed ---- the city had different regulations and zoning codes in place, and much of the (not-pictured) inner city came up earlier --- however the western portion of the city represented here was developed around the same time as the adjacent beach towns. West Portsmouth is often decried as the "snobby" neighborhood by Eastern and Old Ward residents ---- but it's a cultural hub----there's mixed crowd with some big bucks walking down Division Avenue nowadays. Some people move to "Div" for the "street cred" of having a Portsmouth address, while enjoying a luxurious lifestyle. You can see how businesses were built along the historic old streetcar routes, and development sprawled from there. Town of Portsmouth Beach: Anybody from Portsmouth Beach will be quick to correct you if you wrongly assert they're from Portsmouth ----- the audacity! Portsmouth Beach prides itself on being everything its neighbors are not - it's a secluded, snobby enclave. The streets are wooded, and the homes are mostly single-family and evenly spaced. The town is centered around a reclaimed tidal marsh, providing a site to develop 70-acres of parkland. The freshwater lake drains through an underwater culvert to the ocean, providing drainage to the town's highlands, which ascend the wooded bluff to the north, overlooking the ocean and the point. Where there are not direct ocean views, residents enjoy looking over the ridge to the bay and the city skyline to the east. The development style changes quickly when crossing city borders. Fort Pontus is a sprawling coastal city to the south of the tile whose tendrils crept up to the boundary line of Portsmouth. The more dense housing is reflective of the offerings there. I loved developing this tile because it was a joy to reflect on the influences that would shape each network and each block. First I drew arterials and then I connected them as if I was purchasing the land to develop in parcels. Here's a diagram of the process of connecting the village of grove point in a way that was cohesive and realistic. I started with a grid of tight roads then connected them to existing networks, while acknowledging natural features along the way. That's it! This was a real challenge as to figuring out a beautiful and realistic gradient of density to pursue in connecting a harsh urban setting with bucolic seaside highlands. One of my favorite small moments is the north end of Division Avenue. If a driver turns right into Portsmouth, they will see smokestacks and warehouses across the water when they complete their turn. But if they make a left into Grove Point, they will see a pretty patch of trees, then a leveed freshwater pond through the forest. It's just a thoughtful nuance that implies a total change of scenery, and destination, and sense of place. All for an imagined border down the middle of a road. cheers!

Hi - I'd just like to enter the chat and show you all how this parcel came to be developed over many years. Please excuse my lack of historical photos but I'll do my best to diagram it out, in case it's not obvious from the air. Starting from regional view, here's the area we're looking up-close at today: Grove Point Our focus is on the western side of this skinny seaside peninsula, situated between the ocean and a minor regional shipping channel. It's a few miles from the downtown and historical hub of the city, so the beachfront land was developed around the turn of the 20th century into bucolic streetcar suburbs of a bustling portside city. The eastern sliver of the peninsula is occupied by the City of Portsmouth - though the areas are very tightly knit and interdependent, residents can feel at-odds with one-another due to differences in class, geography, lifestyle and access to amenities. These are the Portsmouth Beaches - represented below are 4 distinct areas with different governing bodies, and vibes. Who can see the borders from space? Here's a closer look: There are 4 main players. From the north, there's: (The Village of) Grove Point: Centuries ago, this was a historic fishing outpost, which later turned into a desirable streetcar suburb, and later, boardwalk destination. The village was chartered before any suburban development encroached on its natural beauty, and locals enjoyed 100 years of quiet seaside life among egrets and the spray. After another 100 years of overdevelopment, the streetcars have stopped running and beachgoers turn to the more accessible Ft. Pontus beaches to the south. Now "the point" is mainly comprised of working-class residents, and retirees----they appreciate access to unspoiled beaches and a friendly downtown --- and they don't mind the lead in the pipes or the rainbow sheen on the water. Portsmouth City: Represented on the eastern-adjacent tile, this city is the industrial nexus of the Western Channel ---- it is a rail terminus and seaport hub, and residents are primarily lower-income unskilled workers. The city is more densely developed ---- the city had different regulations and zoning codes in place, and much of the (not-pictured) inner city came up earlier --- however the western portion of the city represented here was developed around the same time as the adjacent beach towns. West Portsmouth is often decried as the "snobby" neighborhood by Eastern and Old Ward residents ---- but it's a cultural hub----there's mixed crowd with some big bucks walking down Division Avenue nowadays. Some people move to "Div" for the "street cred" of having a Portsmouth address, while enjoying a luxurious lifestyle. You can see how businesses were built along the historic old streetcar routes, and development sprawled from there. Town of Portsmouth Beach: Anybody from Portsmouth Beach will be quick to correct you if you wrongly assert they're from Portsmouth ----- the audacity! Portsmouth Beach prides itself on being everything its neighbors are not - it's a secluded, snobby enclave. The streets are wooded, and the homes are mostly single-family and evenly spaced. The town is centered around a reclaimed tidal marsh, providing a site to develop 70-acres of parkland. The freshwater lake drains through an underwater culvert to the ocean, providing drainage to the town's highlands, which ascend the wooded bluff to the north, overlooking the ocean and the point. Where there are not direct ocean views, residents enjoy looking over the ridge to the bay and the city skyline to the east. The development style changes quickly when crossing city borders. Fort Pontus is a sprawling coastal city to the south of the tile whose tendrils crept up to the boundary line of Portsmouth. The more dense housing is reflective of the offerings there. I loved developing this tile because it was a joy to reflect on the influences that would shape each network and each block. First I drew arterials and then I connected them as if I was purchasing the land to develop in parcels. Here's a diagram of the process of connecting the village of grove point in a way that was cohesive and realistic. I started with a grid of tight roads then connected them to existing networks, while acknowledging natural features along the way. That's it! This was a real challenge as to figuring out a beautiful and realistic gradient of density to pursue in connecting a harsh urban setting with bucolic seaside highlands. Love to imagine the vibe everywhere I go within this map. It really feels like a real place to me. One of my favorite small moments is the north end of Division Avenue. If a driver turns right into Portsmouth, they will see smokestacks and warehouses across the water when they complete their turn. But if they make a left into Grove Point, they will see a pretty patch of trees, then a leveed freshwater pond through the forest. It's just a thoughtful nuance that implies a total change of scenery, and destination, and sense of place. All for an imagined border down the middle of a road. Glad I found this group. Thanks for reading More to come - I'll show the neighbors next time. cheers!

Thanks, but no thanks - a lot of people convert my angled stuff reupload them to the stex as res, which I love to see!! I upload them here as landmarks because that's how I prefer to use them. I prefer inert lots when I'm using them for a one-off situation like a corner or an angle. This is for 2 reasons: 1: I seldom have good luck with ploppable residentials, finding they change the character of the neighborhood too much or are prone to abandonment. 2: no stats means you can plop along RHW or in situation where road access is blocked or doesn't exist I actually expected to see the growify versions popping up by now! Another thing you'll notice I skip is menu icons: I just don't care --- I haven't opened my landmarks menu in a decade. Much quicker to just use the command. The funny thing is, I'm only relotting maxis buildings right now ---- anybody can jump right in and copy my current style, easily producing angled growify residentials. In fact, I wish you all would! less for me to do EDIT: Maybe you can help me clarify ---- I think also when I'm talking about "growify" lots I am misspeaking. I'm planning on making a bunch of growable residentials which I will primarily use by dropping them into my city with buildingplop and then using growify - this process different than what you're talking about I suppose? You can reference my recent NY Narrow lots for the gist ---- they're very inert growable residentials with 3 sims per block. This makes them much less prone to abandonment in sprawling inner-city situations than if they were properly statted lots. Although I upload it all with the intent that it will be remixed and reshared however the community sees fit, so go nuts messing with the lots But it's no accident that my lots don't do much. I'd have to be a mayor and a magician to keep my region going if I had 3 million more sims !