Comprehensive Plan for the City of Rockfield

Introduction 

Rockfield is a city with two major rivers running through it, separating the northern suburban area from the southern urban region. The city strives to follows principles of New Urbanism that promote an environmentally friendly community through prioritizing walkability, useful public space, diversity, accessibility, interconnection, and, most importantly, a people-centered attitude.

This comprehensive plan is based on data taken in July of 2029.

Background 

Rockfield began in mid-2020 as a small town situated along the riverside. The land prior to its establishment was empty, allowing ease of settlement on the flat grounds. It reached a population of 1,000 in early 2021 and rose steadily from there.

The city began along the riverside and expanded outward from there. Overall, the original city plan has been kept over time and expanded upon. Middle Park has remained the most unchanged, being Rockfield’s major industrial area.

Population 

As of (in-game time) July 27th, 2029, there are 26,042 residents populating the Rockfield area.  

The population is made up of 2,146 children, 4,174 teenagers, 5,410 young adults, 8,040 adults, and 6,272 senior citizens. The rate of growth has been relatively linear but noticeably growing faster in more recent years as Rockfield has rapidly developed.

The city boasts high citizen happiness averages. This includes a residential approval of 89%, commercial of 75%, office of 94%, and industrial of 94%. 

As the city quickly expands and new citizens settle in Rockfield houses, a rise in births as well as deaths is to be expected. Fortunately, though, the city has been growing at a healthy rate and has seen no profuse influx of citizens.

 

Built Environment 

Goal | Follow New Urbanist ideals to create a city environment that is people-focused, home-oriented, walkable, sustainable, environmentally friendly, and successful.

Almost half of Rockfield’s established land consists of residential zones. With 7,468 of 7,914 households currently being occupied, a lot of Rockfield’s services are dedicated to the aid and enrichment of its residents. Fairview Park consists of houses on or near the main road running through northern Rockfield, dividing the popular residential districts of Laurel Square and Magnolia Hills to either side of it. Orchard Oval, a strictly residential zone with specifically easy access to popular resources, has banned trucks from its region to promote a safe, healthy, and quiet neighborhood environment.

Commercial zones are often spread out among residential and industrial zones instead of constituting their own district. One largely commercial region, though, is Hamilton Park, which is within easy access to many surrounding residential zones.

There are currently three main industrial centers across Rockfield, and two additional areas will be industrialized in the near future. On the east coast resides Middle Park, the core industrial region of the city. North of this is Hawthorne District, an industrial zone specializing in the fertile land. Farther south, Lilac Heights spans across an area of forestry. There are plans to establish the southernmost region, Anchor Heights, as another industrial zone specializing in fertile land; Victoria District, though not yet settled on, is to be a core source of oil.

 

Strengths | Zoning has successfully kept up with citizen’s demands. 

Weaknesses | The expanse of Rockfield means further divergence from the core of the city. For instance, the interconnections built early in Rockfield’s existence will likely become awkward or obscelete as new connections are built.

Opportunities | Rockfield is still surrounded by great expanses of unsettled land. There is an incredible amount of room to grow and find even more opportunities.

Action | Remain conscious of how new establishments, services, utilities, roads, and buildings will not only operate as a piece of the current city, but also as a piece of the future of the city, so that they are more easily able to adapt to a constantly changing, expanding environment.

 

Housing 

Goal | Develop a diverse community with easy access to popular services from anywhere; offer a range of housing and living choices to residents so that their home works best with their unique lifestyle.

For all zoned buildings in Rockfield, there is an opportunity for the building to “level up” if it is well-maintained for a period of time. While commercial, office, and industrial buildings have up to three levels, residential zones have up to five.

Two main types of housing exist: low-density and high-density. Low-density houses often attract families; high-density houses often attract young adults who are looking for work but less likely to breed.

Strengths | Because the city has not seen any outstanding migrations of citizens leaving, Rockfield houses have been able to continue growing from very early on. This means that multiple houses have been able to reach the highest development level (five); also, almost half of Rockfield homes are at the fourth level.

Weaknesses | Diversity in housing options is not yet noticeable or available. Many residential zones are cookie-cutter.

Opportunities | Recent availability of high-density zoning buildings has given Rockfield the chance to allocate more residents in one space, limiting urban sprawl. The Moore Hills and Barlow Park districts have already begun establishing high-density neighborhoods, and the housing in these areas has seen positive growth already. By implementing high-density residences, more people are able to access a nearby service, and usually they are able to access it within a shorter distance from their home than a low-density home would.

Threats | High-density housing is soon to expand rapidly because it provides more space for more people, usually young adults. If the city of Rockfield concentrates too much on expanding high-density residences and ignores low-density options, there will be too many young adults and too few families, meaning there will be too few births and an imbalance between births and deaths. Ultimately, the population will no longer be self-sufficient.

Action | Plan for the growth of both low- and high-density housing options.

 

Economic Development 

Goal | Maintain a healthy local economy through supporting existing business as well as promoting the growth of new industry.

 

 

There are several major sources of income, with residential zones offering the most.

Rockfield has seen a spike in tourism in recent years. There are currently 326 weekly tourist visits, mostly of low- and medium-wealth families.

Strengths | By modestly meeting zoning demands and regularly assessing the status and efficiency of popular utilities and services, Rockfield has kept a healthy, positive net income.

Weaknesses | Some utilities and services, although used frequently enough to continue being financially maintained, are not as efficient as they could be or have not been properly assessed at a recent date.

Opportunities | The industrial districts of Rockfield offer the benefits of its imports and exports. As the city expands, more natural resources will become available for industry to be built around. Though the current export status remains at 562 products—those being mostly goods, then some agricultural and forestry products—outside connections offer great economic opportunities for the city.

Additionally, there are opportunities for economic advancement by altering the policies of districts as needed. The policies will require careful planning, as each district, comprised uniquely, will be affected differently by any one policy.

Threats | An imbalance between worker education and job opportunities can quickly lead to businesses and industries becoming underemployed or even abandoned. Recently, Rockfield saw an unemployment rate of only 3%, yet numerous businesses had too few workers and thus many were left abandoned. This was likely due to an overeducated population: with a low competitive job market (low unemployment rate), citizens were willing to wait for more advanced or higher-paying jobs to open. In a more competitive job market, however (usually one of an unemployment rate above 4%), those workers are more likely to take jobs below their skill level, allowing businesses and industry to continue operating without as high a risk of abandonment.

Action | Conduct further investigation into how frequently individual services are utilized, and determine whether its financial costs are worthwhile; zone more residential land so as to bring in more citizens and potentially create a slightly more competitive job market.

 

Transportation 

Goal | To establish an efficient transportation system that minimizes traffic jams, allows easy access between common connections, offers a variety of available transportation vehicles and transport pathways, reduces travel times, and maintains an environmentally friendly atmosphere. 

Rockfield uses a variety of different modes of transportation to allow citizens the freedom to choose their preferred transportation method. Though cars are popular, Rockfield also offers several bus circuits that carry people from the residential districts to their workplaces or schools. One bus may hold up to thirty passengers at once. 

Additionally, metro lines are a popular method of moving around the city. Carrying up to 150 passengers per train car, metros are used to connect workplaces, retail opportunities, and recreational places (not often are they used among residential districts due to their noise pollution). Rockfield’s metro lines all currently run underground, but they are capable of running at ground level as well as suspended above the ground.

Trains are used to carry citizens into and out of the city center. With 240 citizens occupying each train, this method of transportation is popular among Rockfielders. Because there are little to no intersections that interrupt their path, trains are a great way of traversing long distances in a short amount of time. Around industrial areas, there are also cargo stations that trains may stop at to move imported and exported goods.  

For traveling within and around the city, one of the most popular transportation methods is simply by walking or biking. Rockfield encourages traveling by foot and offers numerous walking paths where other forms of traffic are not allowed, so as to promote a safe environment for those who choose this method. Because Rockfield prioritizes new urbanist design and ideas, walkability is one of the most important factors to the city and it is constantly being evaluated, improved, and expanded.

Strengths | By offering a wide variety of modes of transportation to all citizens as well as providing multiple routes to any one destination, fewer private cars are occupying the roadways at any one time, minimizing traffic congestion and travel times. Additionally, each mode of transportation offers unique advantages: the trains, for instance, are useful for fast, direct travel between major hubs or into other cities outside of Rockfield; the buses are helpful for people needing to get to and from work, as the buses operate in a constantly running loop with short wait times.

Weaknesses | Several main roadways have become overused as there are too few alternate routes to take between popular areas. Congestion on these roads is practically constant as it is used by both in- and out-of-city vehicles.

Opportunities | Focusing further on the implementation of walking paths around the city can relieve congestion and build a healthier, more environmentally friendly neighborhood (see “Parks and Recreation”).

Threats | As soon as one road, path, or route is altered, everything around it changes, too. When new paths and roadways are created to aid the city’s expansion, the patterns of the whole road network will change along with the new connections; with every new road, there is a possibility for a new route and new unexpected congestion or complications as well as the threat of older roadways becoming obscelete and needing to be altered or replaced.

Action | Plan and establish main interconnected freeways that run through the most populated areas of Rockfield; these should have minimal intersections and exits. With these roads being prioritized, develop a hierarchy of roadways that offer better connections on a large scale.

 

Community Services and Utilities 

Goal | To provide communities with easy access to all essential utilities and services; to maintain an efficient community service force that can respond to citizens quickly, safely, and efficiently.

A wide range of utilities operate all across the city. Rockfield strides to implement sustainable services; from its very beginning and still today, for instance, much of the city obtains its power from windmills. By placing the utilities in known windy areas, windmills operate on an optimal, efficient basis. In addition to means of electricity, Rockfield also utilizes water pipes, sewage pipes, garbage services, public transportation, and so much more that span the entire city and ensure access to all residents. 

Community services can also be found citywide. Rockfield offers easily accessible educational resources to all its residents, whether that be at an elementary school, a public school, a university, or a library. Currently, the population consists of 31% uneducated, 22% educated, 20% well-educated, and 27% highly educated citizens.

The city is kept safe and healthy through its systems of police departments, fire stations, and hospitals. With a crime rate of only 6%, Rockfield boasts its exceptional safety. Thanks to healthcare availability and doctors working around the clock, Rockfield’s average health is approximately 79%. The region is assessed regularly to make certain that every location is within reach of at least one police, fire, and medical department.

Strengths | Essential community services and utilities reach every boundary of the Rockfield region. Each school, fire department, garbage service, and so on is placed with thorough forethought to be located in the most efficient area possible.

Weaknesses | Some services can only be so efficient. Sewage is one of the biggest environmental issues in the city, as waste is heavily polluting the river water; recently, however, Rockfield gained access to water treatment plants, which will soon be invested in. Fortunately, there is currently a 0% average drinking water pollution and only a 5% average ground pollution.

In addition to pollution of the environment, there is an issue of noise pollution all throughout Rockfield. Though trees are utilized as often as possible to reduce it, the average noise pollution is at 33%. Noise pollution can lead to health concerns, sick citizens, and financial repercussions.

Opportunities | There are several options to choose from when a utility or service needs to be implemented, and that decision can provide a positive impact on the neighborhood.

When a new source of electricity is needed, for instance, there is the option of the windmill, the water-based windmill, the coal power plant, and several others; by choosing more environmentally friendly options when possible, Rockfield is kept healthier, safer, and more attractive.

Threats | Any alteration or expansion in the city may cause utility or service complications to arise or their accessibility to be out of reach.

Action | Conduct regular assessments of the efficiency of all utilities and services. Build new utilities and services based on these assessments rather than waiting for citizens to complain or issues to arise.

 

Parks and Recreation 

Goal | To maximize recreational or leisurely activities and locations.

Strengths | Parks are distributed evenly across Rockfield to provide as much recreation as possible for all residents. 

Weaknesses | There is a lack of interconnection between parks.

Opportunities | Many parks are made up of standard gravel or concrete paths; maintaining these park areas as scenic “hubs” and connecting them to one another and to popular local areas with paths will provide a faster, easier, and healthier route. With enough citizens choosing to travel via paths, other modes of transportation may be cut down, which will both reduce transportation costs and reduce noise pollution.

Threats | Prioritizing minimal distance between houses and recreation means adding distance from houses to services, utilities, offices, and commercial or industrial zones. 

Action | Invest in parks and recreation that offer greater levels of entertainment; these should replace some of the smaller attractions to provide one centralized, popular area instead of cluster of smaller features. This emphasizes the basis of quality over quantity.

 

Natural Environment 

Goal | To prioritize the health and physical qualities of the land as Rockfield is developed. The city should work with or around the natural environment, not against it.

Strengths | The city is founded on naturally expansive, flat land, making it easy to develop and expand the city without interrupting the environment. The river running through the area acts as a natural demarcation between the cities that make up Rockfield.

Weaknesses | As it is completely flat, the entirety of Rockfield’s owned land makes canals too dangerous in the threat of a flood. Canals, then, have not been taken advantage of.

Opportunities | Rockfield is rich in its natural resources. Though there are currently a few industrial zones taking advantage of the land, they only occupy a fraction of the ample resources not yet settled on.

Threats | As Rockfield grows and expands, the landscape gets further used and destroyed for industrial purposes. Additionally, industrial zones founded on land with oil or ore will over time become obsolete once all the natural resources are extracted, leading to the entire zone’s removal, replacement, or reinvestment in another resource, all of which will cost jobs, money, and time. Once an industrial zone has established itself on land offering resources, the natural environment will be irreversibly damaged.

Action | Invest in more environmentally friendly alternatives to existing services; maintain nature-rich areas around neighborhoods to avoid complete coverage or destruction of the land.

 

Want to see more about Rockfield? Check out the gallery here:

Implementation Strategy 

 A summary of the actions iterated so far:

• Built environment: Remain conscious of how new establishments, services, utilities, roads, and buildings will not only operate as a piece of the current city, but also as a piece of the future of the city, so that they are more easily able to adapt to a constantly changing, expanding environment.
• Housing: Plan for the growth of both low- and high-density housing options.
• Economic development: Conduct further investigation into how frequently individual services are utilized, and determine whether its financial costs are worthwhile; zone more residential land so as to bring in more citizens and potentially create a slightly more competitive job market.
• Transportation: Plan and establish main interconnected freeways that run through the most populated areas of Rockfield; these should have minimal intersections and exits. With these roads being prioritized, develop a hierarchy of roadways that offer better connections on a large scale.
• Community services and utilities: Conduct regular assessments of the efficiency of all utilities and services. Build new utilities and services based on these assessments rather than waiting for citizens to complain or issues to arise.
• Parks and recreation: Invest in parks and recreation that offer greater levels of entertainment; these should replace some of the smaller attractions to provide one centralized, popular area instead of cluster of smaller features. This emphasizes the basis of quality over quantity.
• Natural environment: Invest in more environmentally friendly alternatives to existing services; maintain nature-rich areas around neighborhoods to avoid complete coverage or destruction of the land.

Here is a potential implementation strategy:

1.1 Take time to closely study transportation habits and congestion.

1.2 Define the most-used roads as well as why they are used (who uses them; where are the starting and ending points; etc.)

1.3 Plan a new interconnection of the freeways that prioritize the most frequently driven routes. Make these main routes as short and simple as possible while also remaining cognizant of potential future extensions of the system.

1.4 Over time, build and establish the new major freeway system, noting any issues or inconsistencies that arise.

2.1 Assess the efficiency of preexisting transportation options excluding private vehicles.

2.2 Define the frequency and efficiency of use of the major transportation systems. Note who uses them and why they use that specific method.

2.3 Plan new connections for transportation systems as needed. This may be an alteration of an existing line or the complete replacement of a system.

3.1 Assess and define the financial effects of the city’s services and utilities.

3.2 In places where services and utilities are underutilized or not efficient enough, assess its current budget. Determine whether a change in budget would benefit all of its related services.

4.1 Define the current residential zones and then define new regions for expanding these zones.

4.2 Assess the locations and boundaries of current services and utilities; plan new neighborhood roads so that as many residents can efficiently reach one service or utility as possible. When houses become too far from these main services and utilities, plan new roadways that will be centered around a newly built form of that service or utility, maintaining distance from each other but close enough so that all houses are accessible by one or the other.

4.3 Assess whether a road or a walking path would be more beneficial to the roadway plan of 4.2. If the roadways are mostly necessary, plan walking paths among the neighborhood roads based on the area’s environment and connections.

4.4 Build the general layout of these new neighborhood roads (do not build too much too fast). Implement some paths either now or later.

4.5 Build some core services and utilities. Invest in the most environmentally friendly options.

4.6 Determine whether the location will better benefit a low-density house or a high-density house. Consider the preexisting layout and what it may evolve into as the city expands. Additionally consider the population statistics and assess whether there are noticeably too many births (from families in low-density) or too many deaths (from young adults in high-density not contributing to a rise in the birth rate). Balance the two density options.

4.7 Zone residential areas on the roads according to the assessment of 4.6.

5.1 Assess common pedestrian travel patterns, especially in and around neighborhoods. (Define heavily used roadways and routes.)

5.2 Build paths that shorten common routes or that would be used often by a busy road.

5.3 Determine where paths may connect or where they should converge. This may be in a location where many pedestrians end up at some point on their route, but then soon head in one of several directions away from that hub.

5.4 Build parks in the “hubs” according to the assessment of 5.3. Do not build too many; be purposeful in their placement.

6.1 Assess the effect of parks on residential zones. If an area is not benefitting from parks, plan to build recreation near that area.

6.2 Invest over time in new recreation and tourist attractions, placing them where many houses may benefit from it.

 

Simulation vs. Reality 

Defining opportunities and developing courses of action in a real-world comprehensive plan is generally replicated well in-game. As with a real-world plan like this comprehensive plan by Burton Planning Services, growth in Cities: Skylines relies heavily on following an incremental planning process, solving issues as they arise or become more defined by identifying potential changes to usually pre-existing city policies (see pages 100-101 in Contemporary Urban Planning ed. 11 by John Levy). By following and defining future action based on the SWOT analysis (identifying the city’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats), a comprehensive plan defines incremental steps a city may take to grow.

Many of the comprehensive planning goals, studies, and processes outlined in Levy’s Contemporary Urban Planning ed. 11 are feasible to conduct in the simulation, but often not at the same level of detail. For instance, one area of study, population forecast via the “cohort survival” method (Levy 124-125), may be closely followed in-game as a prediction of future population is formed based on citizen age, net migration, and housing stock. While the simulation mimics the availability of real-world population forecasting well, there are still deviations from real-world processes of forecasting, such as how Cities: Skylines does not provide data for citizen gender, nor is there a detailed way to calculate net migration.

The main issue with the simulation, though, is that citizen’s demands are not usually spoken or understood. Throughout the time spent developing early Rockfield, I came to several blocks where I did not know what do to, because I had no way of knowing what was needed or wanted next. When an issue requiring urgent alteration or change arises, it is usually noticeable via the small pop-ups above houses, and a quick solution typically closes the issue. When these obvious problems are taken care of and the zoning demands are met, I had no reference to guide me in my next steps of building the city. All I could do was randomly build and expand, paying for buildings or services that I had no idea how they would ultimately affect the area. In reality, people are always going to be able to offer a demand or request, even when previous obvious demands have been taken care of. The citizens are a crucial factor of any comprehensive plan and they offer to most guidance to a people-focused planner, so when Rockfield simply operated awhile without any complaints or requests, I made unrealistic, costly changes and additions to the city without citizen feedback that shaped much of this comprehensive plan.