I really haven't played OFB much yet, just experimenting with a test neighborhood to see what setting up the default district is like.
I'm in the process of starting a new neighborhood called "Port Kingston" with all my own custom-made townies. Auto-generated townies and NPCs are using the CAS face templates to get rid of ugliness. Consequently, I don't want Bluewater Village added to my town because it introduces a whole raft of sims based on the old templates.
So now I'm wondering if even making a shopping district is worth it. I have yet to establish a custom Downtown area vis-a-vis Nightlife. I was thinking of splitting the shopping buildings up between the downtown area and the neighborhood.
Anybody with a Prima Guide or experimented enough yet to tell if there are any disadvantages to doing this? Adding a whole new sub-neighborhood just seems like excess clutter.
I have mixed feelings on the Shopping Districts. It is alot of clutter, but that doesnt really bother me. What bothers me is that we have multiple lots that offer the same thing.