I reviewed Anderson Mill on this site almost a year ago, on 4/3/2004; this is a report on the changes I've seen since then. I'll keep posting updates as long as I live here. To current residents: it appears that the Anderson Mill staff reads this bulletin board, since many of the things I wrote about in my last review have been addressed since then. So if you want to get their attention, post your own comments here.

IMPROVED (OUTDOORS). The staff is being more careful not to make ruts in the grass with their golf carts. The downed gutters have all been fixed. Most outdoor lights have been fixed. All front-door lights have been replaced with fluorescent lights, which are harsh but consume less power. Pest control is better; there are fewer anthills on the grounds, and I've had few ants indoors in the past 10 months. The maintenance staff still pick up trash from the grounds daily, and that's a good thing, considering how many residents casually throw down trash and food. Missing slats have been replaced in most wooden patio railings. The large bare and muddy area around the small pool was improved with a layer of stones (although both sides of the sidewalk on the south side of the pool still nearly always have standing water and mud). The bare area west and north of the open space (the former tennis courts) was covered with stones at the same time. (However, there are no barriers at the edges of the sidewalks, so stones keep falling back over the sidewalk. This makes walking and bike riding treacherous along here most of the time.) The drainage channel that runs north-south, to the west of the small pool and the former tennis courts, has been covered with fresh turf (although the maintenance golf carts have already dug several deep, muddy ruts in it), and a low ---- has been built to improve drainage.

IMPROVED (INDOORS). Units have been steadily getting new paint, carpet, appliances, and kitchen and bathroom cabinets as tenants turn over. I haven't been into any of the renovated units myself, but the new cabinets and appliances I've seen carried in look like good quality.

IMPROVED (STAFF). The maintenance staff has increased from 2 to 4, and all are helpful and capable. The office staff has quit making its ridiculous claim of a near-100% occupancy rate.

UNIMPROVED (OUTDOORS). Pool maintenance is no worse but it's also no better. Each pool was closed several times last year for cleaning, and in between those times, the water was often green, cloudy, dirty, and/or full of fallen leaves. (Of course, it doesn't help when residents throw in patio furniture, trash, and used diapers. Shame on all of you.) The leaning chimney flue (building 33) is still leaning. Some wooden patio railings are still missing slats, and some have long open cavities made by rot or termites. A few of the cracked and crumbling spots on buildings' exterior plaster have been patched, but most haven't. The "swamp" between building 22 and Salt Mill Hollow (caused by an underground water leak) is a bit smaller, but still there. It's now been there at least since I moved in, in Sept. 2002, and probably longer. It's not only an eyesore, it's probably a breeding ground for mosquitos during warm weather. The areas of the grounds visible from the streets still get much more maintenance than the interior areas, many of which are barren, muddy, rutted, and/or have dirt washed over the sidewalks. The mailboxes and locks are still rickety and hard to work, and many mailbox doors seem ready to come open at any moment. I never put my outgoing mail in the drop slots, which also look ready to come open at any moment. None of the metal railings have been fixed; many still are wobbly, corroded, or entirely gone. The dumpster areas are still routinely trashy, but most of that is residents' fault -- some can't be bothered to put bags of trash in the dumpster, and instead just drop them on the ground. The staff cleans up this trash as often as they reasonably can.

UNIMPROVED (STAFF). The quality of the office staff continues to vary; turnover is high, and one person has a longstanding attitude problem.

GOTTEN WORSE (STAFF). Maintenance response time, at least for my requests, has gotten notably worse in the past year. My requests keep getting lost, and I have to resubmit them.

NEW PROBLEMS NOTED (OUTDOORS). Water drainage on the property is poor during long or heavy rains; streams form across sidewalks and driveways, large enough that people have to walk around them. Some areas have standing water and mud for weeks or even months at a time, from the combination of rain and overwatering by sprinklers. Dog poop on the grounds is getting worse; virtually no owners pick up after their dogs, and some areas look and smell like open-air latrines. (The staff regularly puts notices on our doors telling us that we can be fined for this, but I've yet to see or hear of any enforcement.) There is almost always junk on the ground next to the maintenance shed (near the small pool). Many of the plywood panels used as the inside wall panels in carports have rotted or fallen off; some (but not all) have been replaced; those that have, have not been painted. This makes the carports look like boarded-up, abandoned buildings.

NEW PROBLEMS NOTED (STAFF). The staff regularly puts notices on our doors reminding us about their rules. But several of these rules are enforced only erratically, and apparently at the staff's whim. These are: (a) keeping back porches, front doors, and the spaces under staircases clear of everything other than plants, patio furniture, and bicycles; (b) not putting up window coverings (blinds, drapes, etc.) that are any color other than white; (c) not keeping dogs on porches; and (d) picking up after dogs. I and many other residents have received notices of what we feel are small infractions of these rules. Yet a brief walk around the property shows that (a) some residents have their back porches piled high with everything imaginable, and some front door areas and stairwells are almost as bad; (b) some residents have had foil and other prohibited coverings on their windows for months or years; (c) several residents have kept dogs on their porches for months at a time -- one for about a year now -- and (d) dog poop is everywhere, worst of all near some apartments where children live and play. This singling out of some residents for enforcement, while others flagrantly and massively break the rules, doesn't keep the complex looking attractive, as these rules are meant to do. All it does is kill our respect for the rules and the staff.

THE WEST SIDE. The western side of the property -- the westernmost driveway and parking lot, and the buildings on both sides -- looks noticeably worse than the rest. Wooden patio railings are in bad condition, two about to collapse. Many more of the plywood wall panels inside the carports have been replaced here than elsewhere on the property, and none have been painted; some walls have no siding at all. Several of the metal poles, placed upright in front of the carport pillars to protect them from being hit, have been pulled out and are lying on the ground. Several carport spaces contain piles of trash, building materials, and large gas grills. The pavement here is worse than elsewhere, with crumbling areas and more potholes. One curb has been shattered into small chunks. One dumpster enclosure is missing a side and has pieces of lumber lying on the ground next to it. Two others have a number of holes deliberately cut in the sides ... who knows why. If any part of Anderson Mill deserves to be called a slum, this is it. The whole west side looks junky and decaying.

SLOWWWWWW RESPONSE. A year ago, a unit in building 6 burned. It took the staff three months to clean up the pile of burned trash behind the unit. It took the staff six months to begin rebuilding the unit. The windows of the burned-out unit were never covered, so during that six months, the apartment was open to wind, rain, insects, and animals. I'm mighty glad I didn't live in any of the adjacent apartments. I'm still glad I don't ... who knows what mold, infestations, and structural problems might be lurking inside those walls after six months' exposure to the elements.

NOT OUR RESPONSIBILITY. In the past 10 months, three residents have told me about bad experiences they've had, in which the management refused to do anything. The first resident said that parts of her ceiling collapsed, damaging some of her possessions, and was told by the office staff that they weren't responsible for the damage. I didn't see any of the damage, and I wasn't in on those conversations, but this person did move out of Anderson Mill. The second resident told me that his car was vandalized by a teenage boy who lived several doors down from him, and who was at that time supposed to be under home arrest (ordered by Williamson County), but was not being supervised by his parents. The man said that the office would not do anything about the situation. He and his wife have also moved out of Anderson Mill. The third resident has had her dining area flooded twice, during heavy rains, by water that came under the outside wall. The office's response was to offer to replace the carpet pad -- not the carpet itself -- and they have done nothing to repair the inside wall and windowsill (which are stained and crumbling) or prevent future flooding. I have seen this last situation myself and I can verify that it's true.

STAFF TIME THAT COULD BE BETTER SPENT ELSEWHERE. Several months ago, Anderson Mill (along with all properties owned by its parent company, United Dominion) began offering the option to pay our rent online, either through credit cards or electronic checks. (Online payments cost $2-$35 each, in addition to the rent amount, thus offering us the dubious privilege of paying for a service that saves the management time and money.) Also several months ago, Anderson Mill initiated CARES, a program intended to build social connections among residents through events such as mom's brunches, men's meetings, kids' parties, free treats on holidays, meet-and-greets, and Bible studies. The program also arranges visits to residents who are having health or life crises. I'm sure that both of these programs benefit some residents. But in the face of the long list of much more basic issues that need attention here, for the staff of Anderson Mill *or* United Dominion to spend any time on these frills is an insult.

ADVICE TO POTENTIAL NEW RESIDENTS. Spend some time here before you rent, especially if you're looking at a unit on the west side. Be sure you see the apartment you will be renting, not just a model. Walk around your building and look at it carefully. Talk to people who live in the same building; they can tell you about problems they've had, and possibly about the history of your apartment. In particular, ask about noise, flooding, problem neighbors, and recent visits by police. And if you have young children, be especially careful. There are many hazards on the grounds -- loose stones on sidewalks; dog poop on the grounds; splinters and exposed nails in decaying pieces of wooden railings; residents' trash and food around the dumpsters, in carports, on back porches, by front doors, and elsewhere; the maintenance staff's junk on the ground by the maintenance shed; sharp-edged pieces of broken plaster on exterior walls; small, unfilled holes hidden by grass; poorly covered access ports to buried pipes; ragged tree stumps; etc.

SUMMARY. Conditions at Anderson Mill are still improving overall. Indoors, apartments are being renovated. Outdoors, some problems have been improved or fixed. The grounds, at least those visible from the streets, are kept up regularly. The location is close to good playgrounds, open areas, walking trails, and shopping, and has good access to highways 183 and 620. As I wrote 10 months ago, I still think that Anderson Mill is a reasonable place to live and a reasonable value, as long as residents understand the pluses and minuses before they move in. It is *not*, overall, a slum or ghetto as some reviewers have said.

However, I'm no longer optimistic about Anderson Mill's future. The progress here is too little and too slow. Anderson Mill is probably about as good as it's ever going to get. It is my strong impression (which I can't back up with any facts) that United Dominion simply won't spend the money needed to make all the necessary repairs, and hire enough quality staff. Elaine Broussard, the property manager, truly cares about her job and does it well, but it seems that she's not being given what she needs to do any better. She doesn't have the staff or the money it takes to fix everything that needs fixing, let alone to notice and fix problems without having to be told about them.

I expect that Anderson Mill will continue to have a long list of small, continuing problems, and occasional, but regular, bigger problems. I expect that the staff will continue its high turnover and that we'll continue to get staff who just don't know their jobs. Finally, I expect that the management will continue trying to cover up its inadequate service with parties, the CARES program, cheerleading about the Anderson Mill "community," and other window dressing.

Anyone is welcome to e-mail me for more information.

Chris, cfs570403@hotmail.com

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