Owing to a job relation, I am forced to leave The Drake, which I have called home for the past four years. It is only very grudgingly and reluctantly, and with considerable sadness, that I leave The Drake. The building is absolutely ideally located, within walking distance of a majority of Center City's finest dining, immediately adjacent to the Kimmel Center, within a few blocks of five or six theaters, including the Academy of Music, and one block from the nearest subway stop. Taxis to the airport are also abundant.

The building dates back to 1929 and is well known to locals as the original Drake Hotel. All the details of the original building have been lovingly restored to their original splendor, and the building is impeccably maintained. The lobby, the "Drake room" and my apartment itself, with its breathtaking views of south Philly, the Kimmel and University City, never failed to make a deep impression on my guests and visitors. Given its location, the speciousness and elegance of the apartments, the amenities provided, and the level of service afforded to its tenants, The Drake is virtually unbeatable as far as value for your money is concerned. When I first moved to Philadelphia, I viewed a good two dozen apartments in professionally managed buildings, and none of them even came close in terms of the value they provided for the money. (All of the above, incidentally, also applies to the Forest City properties in Los Angeles, most notably the Metro 417 Lofts, which are worth a visit even if you don't intend to move there.)

The building's largest asset, however, are its staff. I am honored to call one of the concierges a personal friend. All of the other staff, however, from concierges to door persons to maintenance staff to front office staff, leasing agents and managers, are equally hospitable, friendly, accommodating and professional. My friends love all of the staff they meet -- and in turn, the staff actually remembers my friends by name. I lived alone at The Drake for the past three years of my four year stint; but I never felt alone: In the morning, in the afternoon, in the evenings, and in the middle of the night, I was always greeted with a warm welcome that made me feel more at home than I have felt anywhere else, from New York to Boston to Tucson to Baltimore.

I can only highly recommend The Drake to anyone, without the slightest reservation.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 08/15/2009
Sadly there are significant problems in this building. It has the potential to be a fantastic place to live. It has unique decor, the benefit of a gym, great location, non-cookie-cutter apartments, etc. I'm sure at one time it was, but certainly not recently. There is a bug issue in apartments as well as common areas. The hallways, floors, walls, ceilings in the common areas (at least some floors) are in dire need of a makeover. Peeling paint, wallpaper and mildew isn't on par with this building. The laundry room has become a recent disgrace, with frequently broken machines, flooding on the floor and bugs. Something is also wrong with the plumbing in about 50% of the apartments. And let's not forget about the walls. If you're looking for privacy this is not the place for you. There are some staff members that are lovely, but there are some that are rude. The daytime weekday attendant is nice. However the weekday evening attendant can be nasty and rude. I've overheard her making inappropriately rude comments to residents,complaining about people with packages and arguing with residents who have a late-night problem and request an emergency visit from maintenance. I've seen this on more than one occasion. Perhaps she's annoyed that someone is disrupting her cell phone calls. The weekend attendants are much nicer. The maintenance guys are very, very nice, though I did overhear one telling another resident that the only cockroach must have been in her apartment because there aren't any on other floors or other locations. The management and leasing staff can be very unprofessional and rude as well. It depends who you deal with. The woman who leases on the weekends really has it made. She sits almost all day in the lobby people watching and complaining and gossiping about residents or getting up to show apartments to possible new residents. Isn't that her job? I mean, the getting up to show apartments part. There is so much denial by key staff members of the problems in the building that it makes you think they live in a bubble. They certainly don't live here.
From: Anonymous	Date: 08/16/2009
Sounds like a phony add or written by a staff member/management/corporate employee
From: knightpirate	Date: 10/15/2009
Forest City is notorious for writing phoney reviews on their properties all across the country. Want to see what Forest City is REALLY all about? Check out "neulandlord.com." They are the WORST rated landlords in the country.

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