I lived at Alexan for more than 2 years in the Dudley Street building -- here is my view of the improving situation. I recently moved out.



There were lengthy construction delays prior to our move-in. Also, the original management team (Jim and Brian, in particular) were rude and incompetent. As a result, I think a lot of people became very bitter and angry about Alexan from the first day they moved into the apartment.



Jim was replaced by Brian at some point, but that didn?t improve things. Also, the obviously cheap construction started to show within six months of our move-in. There were broken doors, drafty windows, paper-thin walls and hallways, no apparent insulation, a centipede infestation, routinely broken garage doors, two fires in the Dudley building related to apparently faulty heating units, significant water damage, broken (noisy) fire alarms, broken (not-working) smoke detectors... The initial ill-will related to the move-in process and the rude SENIOR management team grew into hate because of a constant string of disappointments. Residents really hated Alexan and many left when their leases expired. (The leasing agents (as opposed to the senior management) were all reasonably pleasant, albeit daft -- all of my complaints apply principally to Jim and Brian and their regional bosses).



For those who used the internet access and/or DirecTV, there have been fairly regular problems related to those services. The DirecTV signal is frequently lost when it rains heavily and during high winds. Likewise, the Dudley Street internet access frequently is interrupted because of the wireless connection to the Morris Street building (which has a direct connection instead of a wireless connection). The management team refused to assist residents in trying to improve these services ("not our responsibility"). That is not the sign of a "luxury" building.



Once the car thefts and vandalism started, relations between residents and management got markedly worse. Management left residents in the dark and tried to hide the problem -- a dangerous face-saving tactic that ultimately caused me to leave. Some tenants started to meet to discuss the problems, which finally caused Alexan to do something about the problem -- sending a letter to residents disclaiming all responsibility.



During the bad snowfalls this winter, every other building in the neighborhood had their sidewalks cleared by mid-morning. The maintenance guys didn?t start to shovel the snow until 10:30 at night on the day of the bad blizzard -- despite 18 inches of snow blocking the front door on Dudley and the garage door. Portside Towers owns a snowblower; Alexan has two guys with shovels. Smart management!



Alexan was replaced by Windsor in the Spring. I was impressed by the new senior management -- much more professional and more grown up (how old was Brian, 19... 20'). They installed new locks in the Dudley Street garage and (eventually) installed a guard in the lot. Unfortunately, there wasn?t always a guard. I couldn?t figure out the hours; sometimes he was there overnight, other times there was no guard at midnight on a Friday. Apparently, more cars were vandalized/stolen despite the guards. Windsor has promised 24-hour guards (the cost for which, no doubt, will show up in our rent).



So, my assessment is that some things are improving on the maintenance/management side, but the quality of the construction won?t (and can?t) improve. On the other hand, the apartments are nicely designed and bigger than most in the area. The amenities (pool, billiards, TV/rec areas, parking lot) are well above average for the area. But Windsor needs to replace all of the single pane windows with storm windows as a next step to improving customer relations (consult with Portside Towers for soundproofing advice -- from those apartments, you can?t hear anything in the harbor despite the sliding-glass doors). My heating and electric bills were through the roof and I could hear every conversation on the streets from my apartment.



Alexan isn?t a horrible place, but it is not a "luxury" apartment. It is a decent place to live because of the big apartments, amenities and reasonable commute. It also needs some work.





PS -- I would bet a year?s salary that two-thirds of the positive posts on this board were written by Alexan/Windsor employees. Not everyone at the Liberty House is bitter and angry, but no one is 100% satisfied by it either. Also, most of the positive posts have been written in the identical "U R GR8" text-messaging style preferred by 12- to 17-year-olds.



PSS -- Could someone explain why the trash chute rooms aren?t cleared daily. By Sunday afternoons, it smells worse than a high school locker room around the clogged trash chutes. SROlYjGrgm2VnM-SactV

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