Cottages don't grow, and it says something about "needs to be worked?"

[stormwriter]

i don't get it. I've seen cottages sit there forever, and it says something about "The city needs to work for this cottage to be a town." (or something like that)

What's that mean? I thought after 10 turns (sometimes 6 in later game?) that it would mature?

[BgT]

Cities have to work those tiles.

[Krill]

yeah, you can't just build cottages, and leave them to mature, while you use other tiles. You have to use them while they are weaker tiles, to get to the power houses that they become later on...

[Simplicity]

In the city interface, you have to assign citizens to gather resources from the square that the cottage is in. That's what "working" a square means.

[stormwriter]

Oh man, no wonder... Thanks!

Another question:
What the heck am i doing wrong to not get access to every tile in the city interface? Most are dim.
I know it has something to do with population, but ive seem most of the outside tiles STILL dim with cities around 16-18!
They aren't overlapping anything either. I saw a screenshot in the strategy guide of a size 14 city, and EVERY FRICKIN tile was available, and not dim!?!?
What's up??

[Krill]

ah, all you have to do is enter the city view, and click on a dim tile. That tile will then be available to that city to work, and not to any city that was using it before.

Or it could be that those tiles are not within your cultural borders, because foreign culture has claimed them. If it is the latter, then you have to get control over those tiles be destroying to source of foreign culture, or making the culture belonging to you in that tile greater than that over an single foregn powers' culture. (Hold down shift while mousing over tiles to see the amount of culture accumulated within a tile).

[Krill]

I'm not 100% sure on the reason that the tiles are separated into "City boroughs", but it might be that it is easier for the AI to sort out the economy if the tiles are split. Luckily, we are allowed to divy up the tiles as we see fit, and don't have to stick with whatever the game gives us.

[stormwriter]

Cool, thanks Krill!
I didn't know about that SHIFT [rollover] thing. I'm going to try that tonight.
I know some of it could be a foreign border too close, but literally, it happens in my capitol! Several dim tiles...
If i still have a prob, i'll upload some screenshots tonight...