Synergy

I'm finding that work on T-TRAK modules carries over into work on my main layout. I've made progress on my Little Hell Gate T-TRAK module, to the extent that I've pretty much finished the basic physical work:

This is a Masterpiece Modules recessed-deck outside corner module, with two sides cut away. The track is a pair of Kato Unitrack single-track viaduct curves nested and glued together, with the fence or wall casting between them Dremeled off. Rather than use the Kato viaduct piers, I used a Chooch double track pier cut to height.

Now I've got to work on the scenery part. The prototype Hell Gate Bridge approach in this area goes over a city park, so much of the land surface will be a grass mat, with trees surrounding the viauct. However, at the back will be a certain amount of Bronx-style urban scenery. I was thinking about the N scale Walthers Parkview Terrace Apartments. But then I started to think there's a fair amount of unfinished scenery in the urban area of my main HO layout, and in fact some years ago I found a pair of HO Walthers Parkview kits at a good price. I built one with the idea of using it behind the Manhattan Transfer station area, but it wound up using more space than I liked, so I set it aside, and I never built the other kit.

So while I was thinking about an N scale Parkview kit, I realized I had an HO version assembled and ready to find a place for on the layout. I found a scrap piece of plywood to mount it on using a roadbed riser that was already in place. You can see it here behind the AEM-7:

Looking past the loco and the apartment on the right, you can see there's quite a bit of space left to fill on this part of the layout. I've been stumped on this for a while, as wiring for some of the trackwork supported on risers in the background was going to be a problem, but I'm slowly realizing that converting to DCC will make this much more doable, so I think I can finally make progress. So this weekend I did preliminary painting to assemble the other HO Parkview kit, and I'll install it sort of cattywampus to the first one in the photo, helping to cover up the space to the right.

Here's a view from a different angle, looking past the Antique storefront. This is 14th St in Bay City in the foreground.

Adding the two Parkview buildings in the background here will make photography in this area much more practical, which in turn will be an incentive to make more progress on the layout. The main line running between the buildings in the first photo will eventually be electrified with catenary, and the brackets are already installed, partly visible.