Forum:Territory application/AR120-21 - Opelika

Forums → Territory application → Territory application/AR120-21 - Opelika

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	Territory ID and proposed name
	The Territory ID (from OpenGeofiction:Territories, e.g. AR123a) and proposed name of the country

AR120-21 - Opelika

It means "large swamp" in Creek, and yes, I am aware of the town in Alabama with the same name.

	Physical geography
	An overview of climate, topography and landscape of the country. It is advised to also create a sketch, you can add a link to this (hosted on imgur or similar)

The climate will be very similar to that of North and South Carolina east of the coastal plain, having a Humid Subtropical climate. In the western portion of Opelika, I plan to include bluffs and hills along the Lucas River. Another area I plan to include hills is in the far southeastern portion of the state, near the border with -04. Since the fall line is located so far west in the state, the rivers will have a large radius of swamps/marshes around them. Where I have included cities along these rivers are at places where there are tight bends in the river, or where most of the wetlands are concentrated on one bank of the river. Here is my sketch. (cities are not finalized besides the large ones)

	Human geography
	A brief description of the territory demographics, economic development, land occupation, infrastructure and mapping style

The population of Opelika will be ~2.5m, about half the population of SC. See discussion below to see how I reached this number.

Brief descriptions of the four major cities, from west to east:

1. This city will take inspiration from Statesville and Salisbury, NC, as well as some from Greenville, SC, and will be the smallest of the four cities. (~95k in the city limits, ~410k metro)

2. The capital city will be inspired by Columbia, SC, as well as Greenville and Fayetteville, NC. (~120k in the city limits, ~560k metro)

3. This city will have the largest metro area of the four, but will be the second largest in terms of within the city limits. It will take inspiration from Fayetteville, NC and Orangeburg, SC, and because of the nearby hills, will also be inspired by Petersburg and Fredericksburg, VA. (~130k in the city limits, ~610k metro)

4. This city will be heavily inspired by Charleston, SC, with a very similar history and geographic location. (~160k in the city limits, ~530k metro)

I plan for a fourth of the island in the far east to be taken up by either a military base, or a state/national park. This island will also be a major tourist destination, with tourism here being a response to the downfall of the textile mills throughout the state, and one of the reasons for the state's economic success.

	History & culture
	A brief description of the intended culture and language

Culturally, I envision Opelika to be a mix between the large expanse of rural populations of South Carolina, and, due to slavery being abolished much earlier, also including aspects of industry similar to North Carolina and Virginia with the railroad and textiles playing an important role.

History wise, Opelika would have been an area where many railroads were built, due to being between many cities and Orterrado. another reason for the many railroads would be because the textile industry would play a major role in the area, since the soil is made of predominantly clay, limiting agricultural productivity.

After the mills go into decline, when a new source of income is needed, Opelika turns to the tourism industry. The far eastern island becomes a tourist hotspot due to the natural beauty and beaches. Another new source of income the Opelika government seeks out is that of sources of operations for corporations. Due to the central location between Stanton, Orterrado, and Huntington, and being near the center of the east coast, this attracted many companies primarily doing business on the east coast. In modern times, Opelika attempts to continue to draw companies with low corporate taxes.

	Past mapping
	To support your request provide links to areas of OGF mapping which showcase your mapping skill. Mapping relevant to the requested theme & geography is especially useful
	The {{coord}} template can optionally be used to link to the OGF map - it results in a nice formatted link. Or you can paste in a URL.

Michisaukee:

https://opengeofiction.net/#map=14/-36.8889/155.3528&layers=B(suburban)

https://opengeofiction.net/#map=15/-34.4237/158.2850&layers=B(rural)

https://opengeofiction.net/#map=13/-34.4883/158.4095&layers=B(rural)

Bephir (my beginner territory):

https://opengeofiction.net/#map=15/13.8994/-109.2650&layers=B(urban)

https://opengeofiction.net/#map=12/13.8286/-109.5160&layers=B(rural)

	Username & date
	Sign and date the application by typing four tildes like this: ~~~~

JustSomeMapper (talk) 01:15, 29 January 2024 (UTC)

	Discussion
	Discussion for clarification & decision

Hi! Orange Coast owner here, your future NE neighbor! Well, I just would like to point that, when I was sketching my state, I read and consider this article about highways and this article about railways, as they got a long discussion in the beginings of FSA project. It is not a mandatory thing, but please consider that AR120-21 is a strategic place as part of FS-9 (going to Anne Abbey) and final point to FS-50. About it, your skecth fits well, as FS-50 can run till the seaside city, and FS-9 also looks good. But about the railways, would you consider to create a direct rail between my state and Huntington? Just a question. I am mentioning these articles because they was some kind of guidelines to a keep regional and even national integration between the states. As said, not a mandatory thing, I am just asking about it. Best regards! BMSOUZA (talk) 02:49, 30 January 2024 (UTC)

Thanks for bringing this to my attention! I should've read more into the railroad plans before drawing them on my sketch. I'm glad you brought this up before I potentially received my state. I will gladly include that railroad if I my application gets accepted. JustSomeMapper (talk) 03:45, 30 January 2024 (UTC)

This application is super comprehensive, and I really like it! I have just one thing to note though: the population of 4.5 million is pretty high, and would give it a density of 414/square mile, which is around the density of New York and Florida and much higher than what you're going for (I had this same problem when applying for Ogdalen, thinking it was bigger than it actually was lol). I'd recommend you use a density around NC's or Virginia's, which are 215 and 219/square mile respectively, which would give your state a range around 2.33-2.37 million. I'd also recommend you downsize a few of the metros, as that's a lot of cities of that size to cram into such a small state. Other than that, though, I really like your application, and good luck on getting accepted! Icefur2 (talk) 14:34, 30 January 2024 (UTC)

I'm glad you caught that! I thought that -21 was about the size of South Carolina, but some rough measuring with the scale helper tells me its just under 2/3 the size. I will update the planned population in the application to match this. How does 2.5m sound? it's about 2/3 the population of SC (~3.3m) minus most of the Greenville metro area (~900k), since the fall line is much further west in -21. —Unsigned comment by JustSomeMapper (talk).

Hello, I am one of the Archanta admins. I like your overall application, but before approving it I am curious as to what your plans are for the existing mapping in the state. Do you plan on repurposing any of the existing mapping or are you planning to start with more of a "clean slate"? --TheMayor (talk) 16:09, 30 January 2024 (UTC)

I think I will remove most of the current mapping, besides some of the suburbs around Morsboro, which I could re-use in one of the cities. I also want to keep the rural farm mapping in the southeastern portion of the state. JustSomeMapper (talk) 17:55, 30 January 2024 (UTC)

	Territory application approved
	Territory request approved. Please try to work as much of the existing natural mapping as you can, but otherwise your plans for the state look good. --TheMayor (talk) 20:18, 30 January 2024 (UTC)
	Keep in mind the Federal States is a large, collaborative project; as such, ongoing activity, communication, and coordination with other stateowners is integral to the project's success.