I lived in Lafayette Apartments from Jan 2003 to March 2005. I was fortunate that we were the first to move into our newly renovated apartment. Tons of closet space, plus the kitchen and appliances were newly renovated. The pool area was great and the exercise rooms in the rental office were excellent. The location was very near Shoppers Food warehouse, Blockbuster, St Louis Parish, and about 12 minutes drive to my work. When we left, we got our deposit back, pro-rated to the time we occupied prior to our move.

During the two-plus years we lived there, the following were my observations:

1. Efficient and courteous staff (although I was told that the new set of staff are not nice)
2. Inability to lock the main entrance doors (50% of the time)
3. The lack of maintenance and the gradual deterioration of the grounds facilities, especially the playground equipment
4. The deteriorating quality of the residents

About Item 1 ?? We had no problems dealing with the staff during the course of our stay. But with the turnover, well one cannot simply help but put up with the changes. The good staff are typically hired by other places because they do a good job in places like Lafayette.

Item 2 ?? this is the reason why I myself took the extra step of installing the chain lock in my own front door. As far as practicable ?? I personally close or lock up the door when I come in. I come in with the mindset that every place is unsafe, hence I take precautions, whether I stay in Lafayette or elsewhere. I

Item 3 ?? seems like the management office is understaffed, plus this is related to Item 4.

Item 4 ?? during our tenure, we had seen our neighbors change several times. Unfortunately, I have to say that the --------- are typically noisy, but the --------Americans are worse. The last few months of our stay, some of our --------American neighbors were playing loud music all the time. They also do not seem to care less about shouting at the top of their lungs from their balconies down to the people below. Think about the mores and behavior of the stereotypical low-income --------American family and you get the idea.

Plus the moment that you take note of their behavior, they have no qualms about trying to pick a fight with you ?? as if they have every right in the world to shout from their balconies, make all sorts of noise, and generally dirty up the place. I am Asian, and we were taught to value and respect the feelings of others above oneself. Some of our neighbors do not seem to grasp that concept.

Some of our Hispanic neighbors were bad. Three months before we moved out, my next door neighbor bumped and damaged my car, and she did not even bother to tell me till I traced the damage to her car and confronted her about it. Her insurance did pay off the repair, but not the rental car. My neighbor??s mother paid off the rental car fee on the day we left Lafayette.
Some of the children are not too well-behaved. We had a Pakistani neighbor who pretty much left their children out all day. The eldest boy was some piece of work, in the sense that he pretty much felt that he could do what he wanted, to the point of being obnoxious. (I suspect that little boy will one day become an al-Qaeda operative.) Even the other kids stayed away from him. I pity the young boy??s sisters since they were shunned off by the other kids due to their misbehaving older brother.

As for these misbehaving kids, I??d attribute that to bad parenting, or the lack of parental supervision. I could understand the lack of parental supervision, since these folks are probably working during the day. But the little things ?? things that you teach your kids when you are together ?? these parents need to teach these kids better manners!

Oh the other thing about the Pakistani family. As a matter of courtesy I say ??hi?? or ??hello?? when I meet them (the stay-at-home mother does not even acknowledge us), hence I would consider them peripheral acquaintances. Well, the young boy once knocked on my door at 7:30 pm while I was having dinner, and asking me to drive him and his sisters to Shoppers. He explained that they were having guests that evening and that his mother needed some groceries to prepare for their guests. I politely declined, but I could not believe the nerve of these people, sending their kids to disturb other people because of their inability to plan ahead for guests.

The laundry room was also a problem. Some folk would see nothing wrong in leaving their laundry unclaimed. Almost every time we do the laundry, I??d be forced to pluck out the dried out clothing, or I cannot do laundry simply because some of our neighbors did not bother to move their laundry to the dryer. I cannot fathom how some of our neighbors can leave their undergarments and clothes unclaimed! I??ve also experienced several instances wherein our neighbors would wash their sneakers in the laundry, and do not even bother to retrieve them or clean up the sand and grit washed from their shoes in the laundry machines.

Obviously there are also decent people living in the complex. But with the kind of place they are running, it will eventually drive them out. There are a few suggestions that I can think of to remedy the situation.

1. A more thorough background check of prospective tenants should be done, like calling up or checking their previous address, prior to admitting new tenants.
2. Management should secure the doors. This is BASIC.
3. Post more signs reminding people of laundry etiquette.
4. Distribute memos to parents on a monthly basis to remind them about their duties as parents to supervise their children or at least, teach them some manners.
5. A facility or address for tenants to send in their complaints should be placed in strategic areas, in order to allow the decent tenants a chance to vent out their complaints against foul neighbors. The staff should act promptly on them.
6. The supervisors of the office staff should come down and see for themselves how the staff operate or maintain the place.

User Responses
From: tuttie97	Date: 10/05/2006
I live in Lafayette Apartments. I have so for the past 4 years. I can agree that there are a lot of issues with the managing of the buildings, grounds, security, and even the children not having too much parental guidance, but I think you should hold your tongue when speaking on races. You shouldn't say ------- americans are worse than --------- or asians are better than anyone. I am very offended by your comments and I hope that the spirit of the lord will convict your heart into thinking before you speak the next time you decide to write a review about where you lived.
From: JaLari79	Date: 01/22/2007
I agree with tuttie...watch how you generalize people from different ethnic backgrounds. You would be highly upset if someone made a comment in reference to Asians and cats/dogs. I can agree with you about noisy neighbors IN GENERAL! I'm dealing with people who just moved in and are a complete nuisance. I live in a mixed community and the ethnicities you called-out (inlcuding myself) are for the most part quiet in my complex. Bottom line...NO-ONE wants to deal with INCONSIDERATE Neighbors...Watch your bigoted-tone comments next time.
From: deenz811	Date: 02/04/2007
yeah im with both of them above me..don't single out anybody..it only causes problems..you should choose to remain unknown!
From: 1wiserenter	Date: 02/15/2007
Very strong comments! I've live in mixed neighborhoods prior and it was with many families originating from Vietnam and Laos, people from Asian descents and countries. I didn't agree with all that they did or how they behaved, yet it was the way they were and wanted to live. I didn???t care for the fragrances of all of their favorite dishes, but it was what THEY wanted to eat. It would be of great dishonor to speak harshly of your "native cultures or ways??? that are not to many of us "Americanized"; likewise you should reframe from discriminating and defacing the lives of those whom you are unfamiliar with or the results of how or why they do or are the way that they've become. Remember here in America, it is your right to live as you please, with or without personal respects of how your neighbor or how they may view you or your lifestyle. That is why most choose to become citizens, which they may have the freedoms and rights of this country that they don???t have in their own. For most of us who see ourselves as deserving and privileged, if we???re unhappy with a state of living, surely we would relocate prior to 2 years of accepting such behaviors that make us and our lifestyle so very uncomfortable. None is above any other, only one chooses to obtain differently, wise words that you SHOULD be familiar with coming from a country that states such proverbs as this! I'm sure your neighbors whom you deface could say some things of you that they were not comfortable with or are not mentioned here in your autobiography of this complex. You may portray yourself as the perfect picture, however if you are going to make comments, they should be directed about the complex and the living space that YOU secured. That is our main interests as readers, not your opinion of your living experience with the ups and downs of your neighbors. How was the experience of your apartment?? You've really forgot to mention the main importance???s of that! With an educated guess, I???d say that the smarter persons of great respects, moved out long before you did (2 years stay) and the decent individuals did too. To quote your statement: ???Obvious there are also decent people living in the complex. But with the kind of place they are running, it will eventually drive them out. There are a few suggestions that I can think of to remedy the situation???. Which leads me to believe that you were left along side of the very ones you considered???inconsiderate.
From: Anonymous	Date: 02/01/2008
Okay, I lived in Lafayette and know all about the horrific neighbors and experiences first hand. You're on a public site...so you should really watch your tongue. You wouldn't like it if folks made stereotype remarks about wht folks, asians, blks, etc etc etc. Just don't be ignorant or no one will see your point.

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