In a desperate attempt to get an update out, I hastily through together some images and tossed them onto a floppy.
I have also decided that City City will be placed on the tip of the Westernmost peninsula of Michigan, on the coast of Lake Michigan. I have yet to make a map, but I will...
Downtown City City
The city's oldest skyscraper, the General Mortgage Consolidation Building (second from right), was built originally in 1880, not quite at 'skyscraper' status, though the tallest in the city. When competitor Ditech built building taller by one floor with a steel cage (qualifying as a skyscraper), General Mortgage decided to add three floors on top of the original building, just to say that this was one thing they didn't lose to Ditech. The Ditech building was demolished in 1979 to make way for the CCCP, or City City Central Phone, which was finished in 1984. The CCCP is visible in back, as the tall pink and stainless steel, postmodern tower.
The City City Port Authority Building, designed to serve as a self contained, miniature city, with residences, offices, and retail. In the basement of the tower was built an extension of 1868's Central Terminal (not yet modelled) across the river. It was commenced in 1927, but after the Great Depression, only the large base of the tower could be built. The tower portion was finished in 1943, following profits made from WWII by the Michigan Steel Corporation, which funded a large portion of the project.
The Port Authority was very briefly the tallest in City City, until the completion of CityBeacon in 1945. However, more recently, experts and city officials are arguing whether it is true that City Beacon is indeed taller, while topographic research and blueprints tend to suggest the Port Authority is taller, while the developers of CityBeacon have always claimed that their tower was a full 6 feet taller than the Port Authority. The developers also shrugged off the notion that the location of their tower led to the sucess of the developement, while Port Authority remained vastly empty for the first half of the century, but have always said the sucess of CityBeacon relied on its height.
Some modern and post modern towers in downtown. There is still a lot of infill to be modelled.
The West end of downtown. Staunton, New Jersey based Galviston Steel bought the highly sucessful Michigan Steel Corporation in 2000 in a last ditch attempt to avoid folding. The move suceeded, and in 2002 the firm announced the creation of a new headquarters for Midwestern distribution to be built, and the desired floor space called for a new tallest building in City City since 1945. Basic, preliminary designs and renderings were released, but the final design remains under wraps. The construction site, currently a hole, is visible to the left. Currently, digging crews, who reached bedrock last month, are being replaced with drilling crews and steel workers.
Another view of the Southern edge of downtown. The large, brown brick building right of centre is the Jeweler's Building, finished in 1918 and the city's largest for four years, until the completion of the Carson Pririe Scott Building only three blocks away.
A block of mid twenties office towers, with CCCP to the right and General Mortgage to the left.
CityBeacon to left,Carson Pririe Scott in center, and Lakefront Residential Block (1968) on right.
The downtown from South of the river.
The Mitchell Club, formerly a gentleman's club for the upper crust of City City, now contains the City City Historical Society.
Updated map. The empty area to the right will be a mostly vacant industrial sector, and the area below the Port Authority will be the Central Terminal.
Updated isometric.
Prev
I'd say everyone of us here at SSP has made something more complex.
Linear Mode
