"I think this piece of land could be used as a public leisure square for residents, free to enter. As for the surrounding area, we could set up some shops to fill future gaps—this place will definitely attract a lot of people down the line. Land prices are always rising, and as long as it's in the Count's hands, everything can be managed." Orlando DiVara said, looking at the sand table.
It had only taken ten days. Ross, along with the students from the academy and the geographers in Oro City, had produced both a map and a sand table of the city.
Each was nearly seven or eight square meters in size, with the sand table spanning almost ten square meters. They used wood carvings and some molded props to create it, clearly depicting the city's buildings, every cluster of houses, the canals, and the drainage systems. More notably, with the help of Oro City's geographers, they even carved out the city's altitude using layered elevations.
It was far better than I had anticipated.
When Sean wrote down the sand table map, the entire large sand table suddenly felt more real before his eyes. The population appeared as tiny dots on the table, but this time it was different from before—because the table was large enough, the displayed figures even had a hint of color. If you crouched down and looked closely at one spot, you could see something like a blurry model, an incredibly tiny human shape.
With the city's permanent population hovering around over four hundred thousand, packed together like an anthill, it was still the best sand table map Sean had seen in the past year.
Once the sand table was finished, the entire city's layout was laid bare. It clearly revealed the problems in Oro City's planning and zoning. A massive number of buildings were concentrated in the southwest, which also happened to be where his own Count's estate was located. Interestingly, the southwest was the city's highest elevation, while the northeast was relatively flat but had very few structures.
So today, he had specifically invited several prominent business magnates from Oro City to discuss the future planning together.
"No, I think it should all be built as residential housing. Only with housing can you achieve population density. If it's turned into public space, it's likely to become dirty and chaotic. By then, forget about appreciation—people might not even go there," argued Adelman Morgan, another business tycoon standing on the other side of Sean.
"Residents can be regulated elsewhere. As long as we issue suitable ordinances, this area can become a long-term economic source for years to come. But housing is just a one-time income—no revenue for many years after that."
"You're narrow-minded, not just in vision, but in thinking!"
"As long as we increase population density, no matter what you build here later, there will always be a fixed number of people to consume." Adelman Morgan clearly wasn't about to lose to him.
The two clashed head-on, instantly drowning out all other discussions.
Sean noticed that when these two titans started debating, no one else dared to speak—not even their own descendants.
"You're utterly stubborn!"
"You're the one who's confused!"
Sean's face darkened as he watched two men in their forties and fifties bickering like children.
"Alright, alright. Let's set this area aside for now and look at other places," Sean said to them.
Only his words could calm their tempers, because no matter how fiercely they argued, he was the one who made the final decisions here. He could choose one, or he could ignore both.
"So, what about this area? Outside the southern city walls, I've heard recently that many original residents from Tacoma City have been migrating there. Now, that place has a strong xenophobic mindset. How should we handle this?" Sean asked.
This topic left everyone around him speechless.
Looking at the pensive expressions around him, no one stepped forward to speak.
Such troublesome matters—no one wanted to touch them. Once issues with immigrant dissatisfaction arose, the person who proposed the idea would naturally be blamed by everyone.
"This is one of Oro City's more pressing problems right now. I hope everyone will speak up. Today, no matter what anyone says, it won't matter—I'm only taking it as a reference. Since Oro City hasn't had a clear planning manager for a while, your input is very important," Sean hinted subtly.
The various management roles in Oro City couldn't all be held by his own people. Some had to be given to local prominent families. Which specific positions they got would depend on the advice they offered him. By saying this in front of all the families, no one could argue against it.
Hmm.
Seeing Orlando and Adelman both looking a bit anxious, they probably hadn't expected him to say this, especially in front of so many people. This way, even if other families gained recognition, the two major houses couldn't object.
"I think the best approach is restriction. Every city has historically had ways to limit outsiders. We can draw from precedents—back in Tacoma City, there were restrictions on the Edac people. We could follow that example," Orlando said.
"The Edac people aren't citizens of our country, after all. Wouldn't that bring criticism down on the Count?"
"Then you come up with a solution! These residents will slowly drain Oro City's welfare, and outsiders aren't stable—they might leave after this period."
The two big shots started bickering again, but this time, no constructive suggestions emerged.
The room fell silent once more.
Sean had deliberately set up this discussion, yet no one could step up. It seemed he'd have to wait until Luke or someone else arrived to resolve it.
"I think the Count could issue a decree: forbid fights between outsiders and locals, but grant land policies to locals and stipulate that if outsiders reside for a certain number of years, they can enjoy the same benefits. That way, outsiders would stay, and locals wouldn't accuse the Count of favoritism."
Suddenly, someone in the crowd spoke.
Sean looked at him.
Another young man—everyone here today was a descendant of local prominent families.
"What's your name?"
"John Morgan, my lord."
So someone finally stepped up.
"Good idea," Sean replied.
For Sean, the most urgent issue right now was the immigrant problem. The rest could wait until Luke and Danti arrived. Plus, he'd received a letter from Taylor Mian a few days ago, with Luke reporting on the people coming this time.
There were very few—only a few thousand willing to come. Many preferred to stay in the small towns rather than move here, while others chose to go to Koga City instead of traveling this far, even though Sean had arranged decent accommodations for them in advance.
It was a pity, but as Ross said, once you step into power, some things must be lost. Many people weren't willing, but from the moment they formally climbed to the heights, their original intentions were already gone.
On the flip side, there was good news: Harry Wallop was very grateful for the invitation and would move his entire family to Oro City. Not exactly great news, but at least a small comfort for now.
Meanwhile, at the border of the former Tacoma region, many Edac merchants were worrying.
Lately, the trade route from Edac to the Basharan Empire wasn't as easy as before.