As a resident here at Railway Plaza I feel I need to offer a more balanced opinion so that someone out there doesn't miss out on a great opportunity as I almost did. Moving here from out of state I had to depend 100% on sites like this to make sure I knew what I was getting into. When I finally moved here (ignoring some of the negative comments) I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had made the right decision. Coming to apartment living as a previous homeowner I think my expectations may be a little different than someone's expectation that an apartment management company should wait on you hand and foot and meet your every need. I don't have a problem with smells in my hallway, but if I did, it takes literally 30 seconds to spray some Febreeze. If a smell made me gag I guess I wouldn't expect someone else to take care of it for me. That's just me. Also, addressing the high population of ------- - so what' In my expereince they have all been respectful and quiet and clean. Don't they deserve to experience America and have easy access to the trains -or is that a right only belonging to white Americans' Most I've met are on temporary work visas and need to get downtown. They seem to be hardworking and professional.

My garage is bigger than some of the storage spaces I looked at during my transition here and the floorplan of the apartment is definately bigger than some of the condos I looked at when I was home shopping last year. This was important to me. The ceilings are 9ft tall, the closets and kitchen cabinets are plentiful, and the room dimensions are large. Even though I live close to the main road - the window insulation prevents me from hearing traffic noise. I haven't noticed the the air is loud. The dishwasher is a little loud - but if you have ever gone an extended period of time without one (as I have done, living in an older home) then the benefits of having one far outweigh it. I haven't heard any of my neighbors noise - even a yappy dog that lives right next door - I can only hear it when I'm outside - not inside my apartment. The insulation seems to be very good.

In summary, this is not a place you want to live forever - but a perfect transition place if you are new to town and/or can't get on train station parking lot waiting lists. Also, it saves quite a bit in parking fees or Pace bus fees.

One caveat - it's true the management isn't always that attuned to details. Check and recheck everything you are told and get it in writing - and as in other areas of life - don't accept a verbal agreement as set in stone. There seems to have been a high turnover, as well as a change in systems/procedures when the new management company took over so naturally there is going to be some confusion. However, I agree that everyone in the management office has been pleasant, professional courteous and helpful. I had a small leak under my sink when I first moved in and the maintenance team fixed it immediately - even left me a smiley face note and a business card in case I had any further trouble. That's good service.

User Responses
From: jorune99	Date: 08/31/2007
I used to live in Railway a few years ago - I am a homeowner in Longwood only a mile away. I road my bike through Railway last weekend and noticed the following: 1) The building I lived in still had a broken lock on the outside door facing the train. I was able to gain access to the building in a secluded area. 2) Tenets are still propping doors open with rocks. 3) The outside of the buildings are wearing - paint flakes coming off all wood trimmings, etc. 4) Grounds were a mess - beer bottles and cans littered the lawns and the retention pond area. 5) Parking issues seem to be as prevalent as ever. Taking the Metra train I see people parking in Railway in the morning and walking to the train. Cars are parked all over the place in seemingly illegal spaces. This was a big issue when I lived there. I had a garage and two cars. Railway forced me to park both my cars in my garage and/or the space in front of my garage. I was not allowed to park a car in a parking slot and so I had to "shuffle" my cars in and out of the driveway when I need the car in the garage. However, they seemed to not care that their parking lot was being used by commuters all day long - and instead harassed *me* - the tenant. I can't speak about management currently because I left before the management change went into place. However, I did post about how unpleasant the management was on this board shortly after I left a couple years ago. I'm sure that this poster will have a different opinion of Railway after he has lived there for an extended period. My 2 cents.
From: Anonymous	Date: 09/01/2007
Look at the listings in the forum. From the bottom up the recommensdations are; no, no, no, no, no, no, yes, yes, yes. All the yes's are 1 week apart, all in August. All these postings seem to have the same "voice". And the titles of the posts: "Perfectly fine place to live" and "You can't do much better - even in a condo". Come on! This is shameless management/marketing crap! I'd say this tactic is backfiring on them.
From: Anonymous	Date: 09/13/2007
I'm the original poster - a real person - a real resident and not an employee or "management". Apparently my own positive experience isn't valid. You have to have a negative opinion to post here. Sorry. I was just trying to give people the benefit of my research that I did while trying to move here from out of state. I guess I should have changed my "voice" or posted in a different month. Sad. Oh well, I like my life and I like where I live. I would urge people reading these posts to serioiusly question why anyone would spend so much time and effort trying to convince the public at large not to live here and consider the source. Life often mirrors back to us the way we treat people. And, since this is my own personal experince I just want to add that I walk to the train through the property every day and I usually don't see any trash at all. Judge for yourself.

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