CJ Nicaumenee

Today, I want to present several small and large changes that occured in Nicaumenee within the last few years, as well as some more overviews and images that will have you understand the city better

Highway revamp

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One of the biggest issues ever since has been traffic. The construction of auxiliary highways and more exits amplified the problem, and it decreased safety, as motorists sometimes had to cross several lanes on wide, but rather short stretches to reach their exits (e.g. they had to cross two lanes on a 360m long highway stretch). The city set up harsh speed limits - 40 miles or about 65 kilometres an hour - to approach the problem. Even though this measure helped reducing the number of accidents, it was still seen as a harm to the local economy, concerning its negative effect on travel time. To counteract this effect, the city pled for a federal grant to reconstruct the Sherman Park Tunnel and the highways close by, effectively splitting up the highways into main lanes and collector lanes. The role model for this separation had been the basketweave system implemented along Highway 401 in Toronto, Canada. In the image below, you can see the highway system after the revamp. The blue lanes mark the main lanes, the green lanes mark the exit/access lanes, and the orange lanes mark the collector lanes.

The collector stretches contain up to three traffic lanes at exits, effectively representing a small highway on its own. Here some more images:

The Sherman Park tunnel was reconstructed to allow for a better separation into main and collector lanes along the interstates. WiIthin the process, some buildings upon the tunnel had to be demolished, while the fundaments of others had to be reinforced.

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Lakeside Park revamp
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The Lakeside Park on Downtown island had long been dividing the city's inhabitants. Some liked its natural layout, others said that it was a disgrace for city like Nicaumenee not to place a more scenic park there. In a bipartisan decision, the city council voted for a compromise approach: Streetlights, benches, and more pavillions were added, as well as some sculptures and a retro-styled restaurant. The paths were kept in a gravel bed, avoiding concrete. Let's have a look:

The sculpture in the center is called "Caged". It represents a critique on capitalism - the bull as a symbol has to be caged to not trample the viewer (metaphorically).



The restaurant offers a great view on Lake Michigan.

Let me now show you some more overviews and images to have you understand the city in a better manner

We start with Downtown island: Given that downtown hosts many of the city's and the county's civil institutions, as well as several dozen office highrises, and of course numerous cultural institutions, the area's importance becomes obvious. Which is why the island is well-connected to the interstates and the rail network.

Nicaumenee - Downtown GIF by kipate posted Jan 21, 2023 at 10:23 PM

In the image below, you can see all the landmark buildings and sculptures alongside the historical axis running through Downtown:


Let me show you how you enter Downtown by road

The building in the center of the image above is called the Russ Building. It can be seen from street level on Appleton Avenue throughout several districts.


Next to Appleton Avenue, the Green Bay Avenue is one of the most important streets running north-south throughout the city:


The two roads cross near Liberty Square in Bridgend. The square is famous for the St. Casimir Basilica, as well as several performing arts centres nearby.



The pyramids in the image below are part of the Nicaumenee School of Engineering (NSOE):


The Nicaumenee Festival Opera, a modernist concrete building:


St. Luke Cathedral, and the main building of the Diocese of Nicaumenee. In the background, you can spot the skyline again:


Albeit many of the city's and county's civil institutions are situated in Downtown, the Bridgend district also play a vital role in the day-to-day life of the county's inhabitants. Next to the university and the performing arts centres, it hosts e.g. the Criminal Court of the City and the County of Nicaumenee, as well as some detention centres that are integrated into the building complex:



Furthermore, Bridgend is well-known for its parks, with the Madison Garden being the most important one:


I hope this helped you to understand the city a bit more. If you have questions, just ask See you!