UPDATE: I left the game running while I wrote the above comment, and I noticed when I tabbed back that all my people abandoned the town. Perhaps THAT is why the dump is necessary? It would be nice if there was a notification system to explain what exactly happened there.
Either way, this is the actual final result:
A member registered Oct 25, 2017
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I think I built everything except the dump and it didn't seem to matter that I didn't have one. So with that in mind, what's the benefit of building one? I don't believe I deleted any buildings, so if it is that then I wouldn't know. If not, maybe "deleting" a building causes rubble that needs to be cleared?
This is how my "towngrid" ended up before I decided there wasn't a whole lot left in terms of content:
With that in mind, I'd suggest a heavier usage of general resource balancing mechanics. For example, shops may need a dump to continue production, which causes ill health, which causes hospital needs to raise. Parks could provide a bonus to health (because clean air) -- maybe a pollution system?
Its tricky to not fall into the whole SimCity / Cities Skyline level of detail while also maintaining the casual nature of the game. I see this as more of a TripleTown style relaxation game personally. One way to balance the complex vs casual would be different gamemodes, as included on that particular title. Maybe another would be to gate upgrades behind building requirements? Or a technology tree (research with money) so you'd have that urge to raise money before you could upgrade, but in order to do so you have to be more strategic with your shops/hospitals/etc. Once again I didn't really have any need to delete buildings. I started with the water electricity and house in the middle, built outwards from there.
Also I didn't have my speakers turned on during gameplay so I can't really comment on the sounds, sorry about that! And of course, thank you for making the game free to try. It was an enjoyable experience, short but fun.