THE OFFICE:
Okay, let me attack this one item at a time. First off, I AM a real resident blah blah blah, my e-mail address is hollism16 at yahoo dot com if you wanna ask me any questions on this place. Second, I think it's "Cedric" not "Sedrick", and yeah he might be a little alternative, but he's never been rude to me. There's a female who works in the office that seemed stressed & cranky ONCE but every other time they've been a really good crew. For example, there was an incident with a dog biting one of the residents. Now, they may look the other way a when it comes to their "no vicious breeds allowed" policy (unless those are just Chihuahuas on steroids), but when the biting occurred they posted up signs everywhere to find the owner who had been walking the animal to enact some justice. I don't know if they ever found out who it was, but about a month afterward they tossed up a new "dog playpen" area that's fenced off where all the dog owners can take their Dobermans and Rottweilers... I mean Poodles and puppies to go play in. That seems like good initiative on their part. Some other really cool stuff they've done are Pool parties, breakfast on the go (where Cedric & staff hand you breakfast food through your car window on your way out to work in the morning), Ice Cream socials, and "Park Place Idol" (Karaoke night). I don't know if they're trying to counteract the bad publicity on this site or what, but they're doing a good job of promoting an awesome community from what I've seen.

MY EXPERIENCE:
On to my personal experience here so far... I've been here 11 months so far and it's been sweeeet. The price is a little high at $1225/mo for 792 Sq ft, but we have a GREAT location in the complex. There are no elevators, so that's something to consider for groceries, moving in, your own personal level of laziness, etc. I have been in a 4th floor apt though (edit: although I live on the 1st floor), and the view is a sight to behold. As far as the site's location, it's awesome. I've ventured off on runs through the local area, and this is a great little suburban spot tucked away from the city while still being RIGHT off of the 495 beltway (literally, and with no noise!), and only a mile or two from the 395. Traffic coming home is a total pain though. No matter which way you go after 4 o'clock it's usually backed up. For example I come from the Crystal City area and it takes me on average 40 minutes to go that 10-mile stretch. Ehh... whatever. This place is gorgeous and really close to Wal-Mart, Red Lobster, Franconia (cheap gas!), and Springfield (Mall). It's worth the commute and the price in my opinion. My wife and I were babysitting a friend's kid one day and when we drove up to the apartments with their huge fountain and majestic design she said, "look, a castle!" Even on the inside it looks great- my wife and I love the crown moulding and two-tone paints. Very nice.

MAINTENANCE:
For the guys, the plumbing (on the first floor at least) can flush like a champ, and the water isn't shared in the pipes (you won't freeze or fry when someone uses the sink or toilet while you're showering). There was about a month where I woke up later in the day and almost all the hot water was gone though, so be an early riser if you like 'em hot. However, I haven't had that problem since telling the office though. Oh, also whoever the head maintenance guy is, he is freaking awesome. He's one of the most pleasant people I've ever met, obviously takes pride in his job, and is good at what he does. All maintenance woes quickly become bad memories with him around.

BAD STUFF:
For bad stuff, there are no cockroaches or anything like that, but some millipedes come out for a couple weeks each year. They're usually only bad outside, but we've walked in on the cat tossing a couple around a bit before. Other than that, the carpets are raked (like all places) to make them look VERY clean when you move in, so make sure you take a close look at them for reporting spots and stains in your initial assessment. The Verizon guy who serviced our place was a rock, so don't expect prompt service, but once we were set up we were good to go. Noise isn't really an issue. Our neighbors to the side are apparently trained in the ancient art of ninjitsu because we never hear anything, and our neighbor above can only be heard when they're wearing high heels. The only noise issue is that every night when the place is settling we hear an odd "basketball dribbling" noise. It's gotta be the wood settling, but it's kind of weird. Never woken me up, although it's made it hard to sleep once or twice. Another drawback is the DRAWER. Yes, there's only one in our entire apartment, but that's the same as our last place so it wasn't bad for us. Make sure you've got furniture with storage. The pool's only 5 ft deep at the deepest- pretty standard and safe, but you may not like that. The office definitely sticks to their hours. Six means six!

OTHER STUFF:
The window shades are really, really big and thick. They act as almost a wall for keeping out light, keeping privacy (no shadows), and they look pimp. They're kinda heavy though. There's built-in ADT security for each apt. You have to pay for the service, but it's there if you want it. It's a gated community. It has a car wash area with a heavy duty vacuum- there's only one hose though, so you may want to get there when no one else is around. They have recycle bins next to the trash for all us hippies at heart. Apt's have a huge pantry. There's plenty of free parking, with no tags to display or anything like that.

CLOSING:
Okay, I guess that's it. If you want to, feel free to hit me up on my e-mail with any other questions. Like I said though, I've got a sweet location in the complex, so some of the gripes on this site don't pertain to me. Laaater

User Responses
From: elizabethanncook	Date: 06/23/2005
So if you have a fourth floor apartment, how do you know how the plumbing works on the first floor? If this wasn't written by management, pigs can fly.
From: superdeeduper	Date: 07/18/2005
I'd bet money this was a management response.
From: lifetwin	Date: 08/07/2005
I am relocating to Alexandria fora job. What made you select this apt. center and which other ones did you look at before selecting Park Place?
From: hollism16	Date: 11/01/2005
Okay superdeeduper, I don't know how many times I have to say I'm NOT management. I'm not. My e-mail is hollism16 at yahoo if you want to chat. And lifetwin, we lived at Millbrook at Mark Center before this, and the apt's were a bit newer there, but had waaaay creakier floors. Good points? It was a much closer drive to the city. If you want good assistance in finding a local apt, go to "Apartment Search" in the little shopping area on VanDorn, just S of Duke St. There's a Safeway there, and it's across the street from a BJ's Shopping Center. They helped us find our initial place (Millbrook) and were a great help since they're a free service. UPDATE: Nov 1, 2005 We have re-upped our lease. I still don't see what everyone's problem with this place is. It works out great for us. Thanks for the e-mails for those who have written, and anyone else should feel free to contact me on the matter. -Hollis

Your thoughts? Post a response to this review. Display my response: with my username anonymously Responses appear below reviews and one response per user is permitted.

   Free estimates on moving trucks      Find apartment share/roommates