Jessup Street Rowhomes

[starrsim]

I was told that my apartment lot needed more landscaping,
http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/1/3/2/8/8/3/MTS2_starrsim_1162422_snapshot_0000002a_7926b174.jpg

Lots - Landscaping
Landscaping is important for any lot. It's not just a matter of plunking down a random tree or flower patch or two just to have some landscaping, but it needs to be planned and work well with the lot. Well-done landscaping adds to the look of the lot and can take an okay lot to looking spectacular.

but I am a bit confused since it is an urban lot.

It's based on these homes
http://thumbs.modthesims.info/getimage.php?file=1162423

Any suggestions on the landscaping issue?

http://thumbs.modthesims.info/getimage.php?file=1162420

http://thumbs.modthesims.info/getimage.php?file=1162421

[Vampire_of_Death]

I would add something to the backyard. Some dirt terrian paint under the trees will really add a bit of realism. I would add some nice, plotless flowers to the back. Again, with the dirt terrain paint. Also, if you have seasons, you could make a little garden in the back. Let me know if you want to do this and I'll tell you how to have fully harvestable plants there waiting for your new sims.

In the front, I would make these tiles in red dirt and I would add some small bushes there. Where you don;t add bushes, you could add some potted plants and then make the floor underneath brick. As you can see I did 3 tiles of red (dirt) but if you want it to line up under the windows, you may want use two. Try each option and see what you like best. Then I would surround the dirt areas with on of the short garden walls, I'll grab a screenshot for you in a bit.

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/2907/mts2starrsim1162422snap.jpg
One of these will look awesome. I'm pretty sure both came with apartment life, I favor the first.

Window boxes may look very nice on your dormer windows.

Also, you are probably going to hate me, but if you are really try to make that same building, I thing it would look so much better with the individual porches up to the door.

Are you looking for feedback on the apartment as well? If you would like, I would love to give you some opinions.

[starrsim]

Vampire, thanks for your feedback.

Feedback on the apartment is welcome as well. Thanks about the options in the front with the bushes-will that effect traffic flow on the 3x2 lot since it leaves only one tile of sidewalk to walk on for sims.

A veggie garden is something interesting that I hadn't thought of and I didn't know that you could have veggies waiting for your sims, I would like that.

I also didn't see the screenshot of the garden walls.

I would love to have the porches and build the house on a foundation, but wonder how to get a yard in addition to that foundation.

[Vampire_of_Death]

As far as the veggie garden goes, it might take a bit of work, but it will be worth it. You need to move a sim in to the apartment that connect to the yard where you want the garden. Then, go and setup you garden, buy the plots etc. Once everything is planted enter the cheat "Boolprop testingcheatsenabled true". Now, shift click on each of your plants and click something like make harvestable. There ya go. To get rid of your sim without deleting all of the furniture, you should probably kill them off. With the boolprop cheat still on, you can drag their hunger bar all the way down and they will starve. From there, you can enter buy mode, put in the cheat "moveobjects on" and delete their tombstone and anything else they have left behind. Let me know if you need more help with the cheat window. And to turn off the cheats you just replace on with off at the end. But these will turn off when you exit the game.

Okay, next part. As far as the traffic goes, I'll try it right now, I don't think it will be a problem. But, if you were change the front to include the little porches, then, you could move everything back one tile and you could have the two tiles to walk on. I will play test both scenarios for you right now.

Garden walls screenshot is coming, not sure why it didn;t save the first time.

I'll take some screenshot of what I mean for the porches etc.

[Vampire_of_Death]

Okay, play tested with bot senarios and they both work just fine. I haven't tried with a lot of sims, so there may be a tiny bit of build up if there is a party, but I believe the sims will just walk around.

And here is a screenshot of what I mean. Everything pushed back a tile with the porches and the prefered fence. I forgot to grab a screen shot but they are called:
Page 5 of the fences, they are bother right next to each other in teh bottom row. Antiquity fence and iron gardener fence. Personally I like the iron gardener but its up to you.

So I did some small gardens and a sitting area in one of the spaces.

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/2561/56219215.jpg

I tested the doors and they are all functional. The stairs or the door will need to be placed with move objects on, but works great. Did that answer your yard question?

[HugeLunatic]

I don't think you can have private areas in the backyard if you put this on a foundation, at least not without using building tricks and invisible fences, etc. Plus, I don't think you need to rebuild this lot to add some more landscaping.

The backyard has little to no landscaping. You have a few large trees back there but no terrain painting, flowers, shrubs, gardens, etc. Just put some planters or shrubs out front like VoD's first pic and then add some flowers/shrubs/terrain paint in the back yard. Maybe a small pond, or benches even if you don't mind the price hike for the lot. For being an urban lot those trees seem very large and full. I would think the birch trees, since there smaller and thinner, would be more suited to an urban setting.

[starrsim]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm loading my game now to make some changes to the backyard. I don't think I'll make the submission deadline, but next time :)

[Vampire_of_Death]

Yea, I hope you don't think that you NEED to rebuild the whole lot, I was just offering some feedback on the house to make it more like the picture. I did some testing with the foundation and the separate yards. Every fence I have tried had no problem going next to the foundation, is that what you were talking about HugeLunatic? Because it does work.

[starrsim]

VOD, when you play tested it as an apartment, did it allow you to access the yard?

[Vampire_of_Death]

In the back yard, yes. I made a one tile, little porch thing in the back. I'll grab a screenshot for you. I was also allowed to walk into the small garden area in the front for each section as well.

Okay, here you go:

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/8841/26454893.jpg

I added zebra wallpaper so you can see the exact shape I used. My sim was standing at the mailbox. I directed him to sit on the bench that you can see a tiny bit of off to the left. Up the front through the house and down with no problem. I may throw a party just to see how the traffic backs up, if at all.

I threw a party and opened a business with only one open sidewalk tile and none of my sims freaked out, so I think you are good to go. :)

[starrsim]

Wow, VOD. I'm amazed that it worked, I'll have to try it. Thanks.