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*Spirit of Walters* Lo-rise Apartment Building No-CC

by Phaenoh Posted 13th Apr 2017 at 8:36 PM - Updated 26th Aug 2020 at 9:10 PM by Phaenoh
 
15 Comments / Replies (Who?) - 4 Feedback Posts, 10 Thanks Posts
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Top Secret Researcher
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#2 Old 13th Apr 2017 at 10:02 PM
I absolutely love it, Phaenoh! It is perfect for a downtown setting, and I literally just started rebuilding Simcinnati. (Guess where this is going?) Mmhmm, right downtown of that bustling metropolis. That fire escape is sweetness. Thank you ever so much for sharing this!
Theorist
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#3 Old 13th Apr 2017 at 10:02 PM
Very nice and authentic looking apartment building.
The choice of exterior wall coverings is very good. The stairs you used for the fire escapes look surprisingly good, I will have to try that for some of my own apartment houses.
Your optional furnishing suggestions are also good.
The interior apartment layout is reasonably good, although I would've gone with something a little different, without going into details.

A couple of minor quibbles:
I used to live in an older apartment building in New York City for many years and have never seen sunflowers anywhere - they simply don't belong on an urban lot like this.
Fire escapes are open to the roof area, so I would suggest removing one of the half-wall segments on the roof and replacing it with a segment of metal fencing (not a gate, since you presumably don't want to actually enable Sims to climb all over the fire escapes). That's to make it look like there's access to the fire escape from the roof and vice-versa.
Likewise, apartments don't have actual doors leading out into fire escapes, just regular windows.
Doing all the things, and *mostly* not failing.
retired moderator
Original Poster
#4 Old 13th Apr 2017 at 10:12 PM
Hi ScaryRob, thank you for your feedback.

I picked the sunflowers because I used to live in a building similar to this and on the lot right next to ours was a community garden and the sunflowers they had were like 10 feet tall, I'd never seen sunflowers so tall in my life. Now, I was in an older part of Cincinnati and not NYC, so maybe that's the difference.

If you look on the roof floorplan view, there actually is a fence gate from the fire escape right next to the elevator shaft, so the fire escape is accessible from the roof. It doesn't matter if sims can get to the fire escape or not, there isn't anything for them there, so they won't naturally route to it. Also, the fire escape 'doors' are actually windows. Apartment lots don't work properly if there are multiple exits and entrances to each apartment, so I used a window that would be large enough to escape from if needed.
Theorist
#5 Old 13th Apr 2017 at 10:26 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Phaenoh
Hi ScaryRob, thank you for your feedback.

I picked the sunflowers because I used to live in a building similar to this and on the lot right next to ours was a community garden and the sunflowers they had were like 10 feet tall, I'd never seen sunflowers so tall in my life. Now, I was in an older part of Cincinnati and not NYC, so maybe that's the difference.

Fair enough, although a community garden could also be considered a park, so yes, sunflowers would be OK there.

Quote:
If you look on the roof floorplan view, there actually is a fence gate from the fire escape right next to the elevator shaft, so the fire escape is accessible from the roof. It doesn't matter if sims can get to the fire escape or not, there isn't anything for them there, so they won't naturally route to it. Also, the fire escape 'doors' are actually windows. Apartment lots don't work properly if there are multiple exits and entrances to each apartment, so I used a window that would be large enough to escape from if needed.

Ah OK, I hadn't noticed the roof access - that's exactly what I was describing.
I know the fire escape 'doors' are actually windows, but my point is that apartments like this don't have doors to the fire escapes, so there's no reason to make it look like there are. Well, your experience living in apartments like this might be different from mine.

Again, good job on the Lot.
Doing all the things, and *mostly* not failing.
retired moderator
Original Poster
#6 Old 13th Apr 2017 at 10:42 PM
I definitely wouldn't call it a park, it was in a lot where a building had burnt down, and a few of the locals decided they were tired of looking at all the weeds, so they cleaned it up a bit and planted a few things. The row of sunflowers against the next building was what inspired me for these.

The fire escapes we had in that building were accessible through HUGE windows. The ceilings were 10 or 12 feet high and the windows started about 2 feet off the ground and then went all the way to the top. They were about 3 feet wide too. I believe the reason they were so big was because the building didn't originally have central heating or cooling so they had to rely on being able to get enough air in through the windows. We used to open them up and hang out back there, we would have done it more often, but the cords connecting the counterweights inside the windows had snapped, so opening the heavy window by itself was pretty tricky. My fire escape windows here are also strategically placed to get cross-ventilation with the living room windows.

The contest has 4 more rounds, so maybe keep an eye out for what I do with the others? They will all have the same vibe, but as I'll be constrained by a budget, I can't always do what I want - regarding layout, furnishings, and decor. Check out the contest thread to see how everyone else laid out their houses too!
Doing all the things, and *mostly* not failing.
retired moderator
Original Poster
#7 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 12:40 AM
Added pic to the upload showing all the floors. Well, I think that's all the floors. I took a picture of each floor from each direction so you could see things that would be hidden by walls, but when I was putting them into the collage, I'm not sure if I put the middle two in the right order or if I switched them (the top two in the image), or if I used one apartment twice. I know I have the lowest and the highest ones though.

Edit: Yeah, I think I switched them, I'm pretty sure that's 3 and 2 on the top, and 1 and 4 on the bottom. I'm basing it off how far away the playground fence looks.

Forum Resident
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#8 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 9:54 AM
Welcome back and thank you for such a wonderful addition to our games.
Test Subject
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#9 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 11:14 AM
Quite nostalgic, and very nicely done without CC!
Constant Contestant
retired moderator
#10 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 3:58 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Phaenoh
Added pic to the upload showing all the floors. Well, I think that's all the floors. I took a picture of each floor from each direction so you could see things that would be hidden by walls, but when I was putting them into the collage, I'm not sure if I put the middle two in the right order or if I switched them (the top two in the image), or if I used one apartment twice. I know I have the lowest and the highest ones though.

Edit: Yeah, I think I switched them, I'm pretty sure that's 3 and 2 on the top, and 1 and 4 on the bottom. I'm basing it off how far away the playground fence looks.
Thank you Phae

Want a specific style of house or community building? Why not take a look at my profile and see what I build and then come ask me to make it!
Link Ninja
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#11 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 9:38 PM
Phae this is wonderful! You did such a good job within the core contest limits and I've said it before but I will say it again, I love that you did a four-square pattern out front! Very simple but robust design!
Test Subject
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#12 Old 14th Apr 2017 at 11:15 PM
This is so beautiful.
Test Subject
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#13 Old 17th Apr 2017 at 7:42 AM
Love it <3 This is exactly what I needed in my neighbourhood
Test Subject
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#14 Old 17th Apr 2017 at 4:40 PM
Love it! Thanks
Test Subject
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#15 Old 2nd May 2017 at 11:10 PM
Love to see the old fashioned buildings and fire escapes! Lived in a place very similar in Chicago in the 60s.
Link Ninja
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#16 Old 12th Feb 2020 at 10:59 PM
Sorry I never came to praise this, I have had it in my game awhile. A nice couple with their cat lives on the second floor and a Drag Queen on the first. Lovely apartment