[Genma Saotome]

Downtown Chicago has long been called "the Loop" for ~100 years or so -- named after a circle of elevated commuter rail that ringed downtown. The commuter rail -- and the name -- remain in use today.

What I'm trying to do with The Loop in the Goose Island project is provide a scenic background to the areas where trains will be operated. Some future incarnation could include the elevated commuter rail but that's not in my plans but perhaps someone else will want to do that. The Loop could also be expanded just a few blocks to the south and include two additional passenger terminals -- Grand Central and Dearborn, and with further expansion the tracks entering those stations... again, not in my plans bu7t, again, perhaps someone else will want to do that.

So here's what I've plugged in so far, as seen from the MILW bridge that crosses the Chicago River near Wolf Point... this is looking southeast at the Loop:


What I've accomplished is about 2 streets worth of buildings as measured from the river's edge. I want to convey that the area is both built up and crowded. As I'm a sticker for accuracy everything shown is patterned from the Sanborn maps, 1941-51, meaning the models do have the right shape and height that the real buildings had.

The way I work is to get the basic shape modeled... at some later time I'd do basic textures, and later still finish w/ the right detils (so these are very preliminary).

[captain_bazza]

That's a great looking skyline, Dave.

Cheers Bazza

[Bernie]

This is where being a stickler and a highly accomplished modeler really shows, this latest update looks great! :sweatingbullets: I can't wait to see how this same shot looks once you finish texturing the buildings! :good:

[Noisemaker]

Looking great Dave! ;) Are you going to build all the bridges too, or go with Ron Picardi's or the like? They're pretty well all iron/steel work underneath aren't they? Make your buildings seem like nothing after awhile. ;)

I've heard of Dearborn, MI - but a Dearborn station in Chicago as well? Any connection between the two? Michigan Central or something?

[Genma Saotome]

Noisemaker, on 26 April 2013 - 12:54 PM, said:

Looking great Dave! ;) Are you going to build all the bridges too, or go with Ron Picardi's or the like? They're pretty well all iron/steel work underneath aren't they? Make your buildings seem like nothing after awhile. ;)

I've heard of Dearborn, MI - but a Dearborn station in Chicago as well? Any connection between the two? Michigan Central or something?

I'm going to try a bridge, just to see how it goes. Here's the Division St bridge to Goose Island (on the right):


There's plenty of data & photos in the HABS/HAER collection so I'll have good info to work from.

WRT Dearborn Station... Ft Dearborn is the original name for Chicago.

[CrisGer]

looking great Dave, hopefully if i run fast with my studies with TSM and SUP i will be able to help populate the city...Ron has some great bridges some of which can be adjusted for Chicago, i know those bridges well and some of them are very nice in design ...so much to enjoy about that location....

that area was origianlly swamp land and took a lot of draining and work to make it somewhat stable but a lot of the big buildings needed deep caissons to make them stable. I see some very familiary structures there.

[Noisemaker]

That's how I pictured them Dave, either above and/or below. Pretty intricate work, and better you than me. :discuss_gathering: But if you use Ron Picardi's bridge textures at least, at may speed up the process and be easy on the polys as well.