Windstrand
Windstrand | |
|---|---|
  .jpg)  Clockwise from top: the skyline of Windstrand along The Strip, condominiums lining West Beach, the colonial Hennish architecture of the Oustad, Windstrand City Hall | |
| Nickname: "The Windy City" | |
| Country | Nuvania |
| Province | Etten |
| District | Windstrand |
| Municipality | Windstrand |
| Established | August 5, 1547 |
| Legislature | Windstrand City Council |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Yvette Ryder (DAP) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Urban | 3,120,282 |
| • Metro | 4,661,793 |
| Demonym | Windstrander |
| Time zone | UTC -6 |
| Website | www.wcc.nv |
Windstrand is a city located on the northern coast of Nuvania, straddling the equator as well as Nuvania's northernmost point, Cape Kuypers. With a total population of 4.6 million, it is the second largest city in Nuvania, and the largest city in Etten province. The city is an important manufacturing and logistics centre, and is the location of Nuvania's largest and busiest port.
Founded on August 5, 1547, Windstrand was known as Port Veer throughout most of its early existence as a trading port as well as the jumping point for Hennish settlement by the First Hennish Republic, whose South Asterian Company (ZAK), established Windstrand as the settlement. Windstrand's growth and influence was tied both to the colonialism and conquest of the ZAK and to its connections with other Hennish colonies in the West Arucian Sea, and those of other Euclean states. Windstrand competed with Pietersburg for influence and prestige within the ZAK colonies, which were assumed by the Sotirian Commonwealth between 1642 and 1719. The city became wealthy with the conquests of both the Tairona and the Mwiska peoples, seeing massive trade in gold, silver, precious stones, and salt. Beginning in the early 18th century, Windstrand was also underpinned by an increase in trade in cash crops from farms grown in Etten province, of which it was the capital until the establishment of Ettensburg in 1712.
Windstrand's growth continued through the Grand Duchy of Flamia and into Estmerish rule, the latter seeing substantial population and economic growth as well as development, with a number of famous buildings built during Estmerish rule. The city played an important part in the War of the Arucian, the port hosting much of the Nuvanian fleet that helped secure victory, and became one of the most multicultural cities in Nuvania owing to its economic importance.
The city was renamed from Port Veer to Windstrand in 1898 and was at the forefront of Nuvania's industrialisation, hosting a large number of factories that grew until the Great Collapse. During the Volksfront era, a policy of the separation of ethnicities was used for Windstrand's urban planning, which then went on to be used around the country. This urban planning policy was one of the factors in the deadly Maitland riot in 1949, and subsequently saw the birth of a social and civil rights movement for Nuvania's minority communities in the 1950's. The city saw significant social upheaval in the 1960's with the May riots taking place in 1969 as well as other significant social protests. This lead to significant changes in how the city was managed, including the allocation of housing to various different ethnic groups. Windstrand became a model for other large cities in Nuvania, and the Windstrand model is often used as a template for both social housing and private developments.
Today, Windstrand remains one of the most liveable cities in Nuvania in terms of safety and quality of life, and prior to the Pico de Sangue eruption, was one of the country's most important tourist destinations. It also remains one of the most multicultural cities in Nuvania.
Etymology
Windstrad was named Port Veer after Fransz de Veer, the first appointed director of the South Asterian Company (ZAK) who helped to found the city and became its first administrator. It was originally to be named Heemskerck after the Stadtholder Cornelis van Heemskerck but this was rejected in favour of Port Veer by the inhabitants, or Veerspoort in Hennish. Windstrand appeared as Veerspoort in Hennish maps and documents, and from 1749 until 1898, as Port Veer. A proposal to rename the city Kuypersburg after the death of former Minister-General Adriaan Kuypers was rejected by the then town council and the inhabitants after a plebiscite on the issue.
The Windstrand name comes from the Estmerish and Hennish words "wind" and the Hennish strand for beach, noting that the city had continual sea breezes as well as trade winds blowing from the north and northeast. The proposal to rename the city had originally been mooted in 1879 but was deemed to be unimportant. The post-independence national government of Piet van Kyl thought of the prior name as being too reminiscent of the colonial period, and passed laws in Parliament to have the name changed as part of a wider program to rename cities and towns the government felt to have too much Estmerish influence. Thus in 1898, the city's name was officially changed to Windstrand. It would take a plebiscite held in December 1941 to affirm the city's name as Windstrand in the eyes of the general public.
History
Geography
Windstrand occupies a headland on the flat northern coast of Nuvania, covering the northernmost portions of the country. The northern parts of the city lie directly on, or just above, the equator, making Windstrand unique in Nuvania in that it occupies both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The northernmost point in Nuvania, Cape Kuypers, lies six kilometres within the Northern Hemisphere.
Because of the shape of the headland, Windstrand's developed has been influenced by its geography. Extending westwards from the headland is a spit of land less than a kilometre wide known as The Spit, which extends for three kilometres and is one of the defining features of Windstrand's geography. Much of the city is built on reclaimed swamp and wetlands, with some coastal areas reclaimed from mangrove swamps. Much of the original landscape now lies underneath the city, and as a result, many parts of Windstrand suffer from issues associated with subsidence. This is especially problematic in northern and central parts of the city where the soils are less dense, and therefore take longer to settle or are unable to support large structures. The city's rapid upswing in construction of high rise buildings and skyscrapers has accelerated the subsidence.
Located on a flat coast, Windstrand has few natural elevated points within the city. The centre of the headland rises to a total elevation of 16 metres above sea level, while some outer areas are higher. Along the coast and especially along The Spit, the altitude above sea level is barely one or two metres. Further inland, the terrain undulates somewhat and low hills populated inner parts of the city, particularly in places where many of the original lakes and weirs have existed, and which continue to exist. These have created natural vantage points looking out across the city, although these hills are modest in height, with none of them having an altitude higher that 40 metres. Many of these hills lie within parklands created alongside the weirs and lakes that provide Windstrand with fresh water, although some have been developed, and as a result, have negligible influence in the city's development.
The swampy nature of the original landscape has meant a large number of ponds and lakes exist within the urban limits as well as areas of swamps and wetlands that remained undeveloped, either due to a lack interest or protections from local and provincial governments. Many of these lakes often have urban developments around them and were only granted protections recently. These pools of freshwater have historically been sources of drinking water for the city, as well as water for irrigation and other activities. During the 20th century, the city undertook a series of projects to construct and retain fresh water for the city without having to construct expensive desalination plants. The first of these was constructed between 1909 and 1924, this one providing the majority of Windstrand's water until the late 1960's. It was joined by a second weir in 1973, and the third and largest weir in 1981. These projects are continually fed through diverted water courses as well as through seasonal rainfall, and collectively hold 453.1 million cubic metres of fresh water. In addition to providing fresh water, these also provide a place of recreation for the residents of Windstrand and surrounding cities.
Beaches are a predominant feature in Windstrand's geography, outlining the coastal fringes of the city. They are often a focal point for many events in the city, hosting events and festivals as well as being popular with locals and tourists. Windstrand's principal beaches are named after three of the four cardinal points; East, North, and West. Of these beaches, West Beach is the largest and the most popular owing to its western facing which often makes it popular with those wanting to view sunsets. West Beach is also the largest of the beaches and runs continuously for over ten kilometres. North Beach is three kilometres in length and is often popular with locals, especially residents who live in the residential areas in the north of Windstrand. North Beach is also a popular kitesurfing location due to consistent winds in the area. East Beach is less popular than the other beaches, and also extends for four kilometres, extending between Cape Kuypers to the northwest and the mouth of the Chikiruru River.
Climate
Located close to the equator, Windstrand experiences a tropical rainforest climate with significant year round rainfall as well as hot and humid weather, with average humidity between 85-90% most days of the year. Windstrand is the wettest of Nuvania's major cities, seeing over 2,400 millimetres of rain annually, as well as its second warmest, with an average mean temperature of 27.1°C. Despite this, the city experiences near constant sea breezes that keep coastal areas of the city cool, and give rise to the city's name.
Windstrand's dry season is short, due to its equatorial latitude. Although not a true dry season, rainfall is significantly reduced for four months of the year between August and November. During this time, monthly rainfall totals virtually halve, and the city experiences overall drier conditions, as well as slightly reduced humidity. Overall temperatures remain similar to those during the wet season, although slightly reduced in intensity. October is the wettest month of the year, seeing barely 40 millimetres of precipitation.
Windstrand's wet season lasts for the remainder of the year, between December and July. During this time, humidity increases significantly as well as rainfall, which virtually doubles during the first month of the wet season. This is not continual rain, but rather heavy convection activity that occurs during significant increases in overall humidity and comes in the form of large thunderstorms that move in from the West Arucian Sea. This gives way to more consistent rainfall patterns by February, with the peak reached during the months of March and April, the former being the wettest month of the year on average. Temperatures decrease during this period slightly, with February seeing the lowest average high temperatures and March seeing the lowest average mean temperatures.
Windstrand has comparatively few natural hazards as a major city, owing to its location inside the West Arucian Sea. Because of this, the most frequent hazard is flash flooding, which can occur from December through to February when rainfall patterns are more erratic.
The highest official temperature recorded in Windstrand is 37.3°C, which was observed at Windstrand International Airport on September 4, 1973. The city's lowest temperature is 11.2°C, and was observed at the Hyland Park Weir on October 19, 2004.
| Climate data for Windstrand, Nuvania | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 29.5 (85.1) |
29.1 (84.4) |
28.7 (83.7) |
28.8 (83.8) |
29.0 (84.2) |
29.8 (85.6) |
30.0 (86.0) |
31.4 (88.5) |
31.9 (89.4) |
32.4 (90.3) |
32.4 (90.3) |
31.1 (88.0) |
30.3 (86.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.7 (80.1) |
26.1 (79.0) |
26.2 (79.2) |
26.3 (79.3) |
26.5 (79.7) |
26.7 (80.1) |
26.7 (80.1) |
27.7 (81.9) |
28.1 (82.6) |
28.7 (83.7) |
28.8 (83.8) |
27.8 (82.0) |
27.1 (80.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 24.2 (75.6) |
24.1 (75.4) |
24.1 (75.4) |
24.2 (75.6) |
24.5 (76.1) |
24.5 (76.1) |
24.3 (75.7) |
24.8 (76.6) |
25.2 (77.4) |
25.4 (77.7) |
25.6 (78.1) |
25.0 (77.0) |
24.6 (76.3) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 293.62 (11.56) |
328.11 (12.92) |
374.72 (14.75) |
367.20 (14.46) |
330.46 (13.01) |
161.99 (6.38) |
128.59 (5.06) |
85.69 (3.37) |
39.26 (1.55) |
40.72 (1.60) |
55.44 (2.18) |
224.96 (8.86) |
2,430.76 (95.7) |
| Average precipitation days | 30 | 27 | 31 | 30 | 29 | 27 | 21 | 20 | 13 | 11 | 14 | 24 | 277 |
| Source: Nuvanian Weather Service | |||||||||||||