I've been a resident here for over 7 years now.

And there are good AND bad things about living here.

Pros
1) Large apartments. The building was the first in battery park city, and was originally built to be Mitchell-Lama, but never actually was. So the apartments are huge.
2) Rent stabilized. You'll move in at a market rent, but as long as the rent stabilization agreement remains in effect, your rent will only be raised the state mandated rate. This is a great long term deal, if plan on living in the same place for a while. NOTE: the current rent stabilization agreement is up for renewal with Lefrak (the building owners), more likely that not will be renewed.
3) Views. Harbor/marina/park views are great. I only have a side view, but even that gives me great park views.
3) Parks and river. The building itself might not be super-luxe, but the esplanade, north cove, playgrounds and dog runs are just awesome, if you like the outdoors.
4) Schools. Lower manhattan has some of the best schools. Stuyvesant is in walking distance. A new green grade school is being built behind the Ritz Carlton.
5) Quiet. The present facade-construction work aside, you could live as far as a block from any traffic, on a private ringroad with a private courtyard park.

Cons
1) Management Office. It's like you've hit a time warp, and gone back to 1975. Service' Quality' These words aren't top priorities. The staff isn't top notch, but we're not paying for top notch people (see Rent Stabilization above).
2) Quality. Apartment views aside, the building was built to be Mitchell-Lama housing, which means if you're expecting super-luxe, you should go elsewhere. The apartments are fine, though. Average quality, not super-luxe.
3) Neighborhood. Aside from the parks, esplanade, marina, playgrounds etc., there is still a dearth of good restaurants and lounges. It's easy to get out of the neighborhood, tho (WFC cabstand out front, near most subways, free lower manhattan shuttles), but it's a pain usually have to leave the neighborhood. SOMEONE OPEN SOME NICE RESTAURANTS DOWN HERE.
4) Winter. Spring, summer, fall - I walk outside and love life. It's so beautiful, the breezes are cool, and the Hudson River is your friend. It's typically a few degrees cooler here in the summer. But it's also typically a few degrees cooler in the winter, and the winds can be bitter. The Hudson River is a boon and bane, but you will hate your winter life if you live on the waterfront.

One last note: if rent stabilization was ever lifted, I would never live here. So watch for that. The rent I pay for a large parkfacing 2 bedroom apt is sinful, but the price and stability justifies the service and average construction.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 01/07/2009
I agree - the Management office is quite possibly the rudest and most disrespectful people around. And the attitude problem starts at the bottom and goes all the way to the top with James Heller, the General Manager. There's a reason why there are so many vacancies now. They are trying to charge premium rents for concrete walled apartments. Live here at your own peril.

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