As the 19-year-old daughter of one of Brentwood's long-term residents, I've experienced this apartment complex from both a child's point of view and the perspective of a young adult. And I will not sugar-coat this review.

Within my first year living here I learned more about alcohol and drug use than any 13-year-old should know. By the end of my second year living at Brentwood, all of the other teenagers in the complex had gotten their families evicted or had been sent to juvenile hall at least once.

Although the population of teenagers has decreased since then, more adults with the maturity levels of teenagers have settled here at Brentwood. Children, young children, run free without adult supervision well after dark because their parents are either too self-involved or too inebriated to keep an eye on them. I constantly worry that this mentality will rub off on my impressionable 11-year-old sister. Perhaps this wouldn't be a problem if the managers accepted their responsibility to screen applicants for drug convictions and other issues that would make them unacceptable to live in a family community.

Several years ago a friend of mine leaned against the railing outside one of the upper-level apartments, when the railing broke. This girl was about 5'5 and 110 pounds, if that. Luckily her injuries were minimal. I'm unaware as to whether Brentwood reimbursed her for this, but the key issue is the safety of these structures so many of us call home.

More recently, my sister was playing in the grass outside our apartment, when she cut her hand on a broken beer bottle. Had it been any deeper, the doctor tells us she could have lost the use of her hand. Management promised they would send out a notice to warn the other tenants, as well as pay the hospital bill. Neither of these promises were kept, unless you count $283 towards a $1,300 medical bill.

Break-ins and theft are incredibly common occurrences here at Brentwood. So common, in fact, that it's been nicknamed "BrentHood". A few years ago the complex was patrolled regularly, but lately I haven't seen so much as a rent-a-cop. Unless of course someone calls them, but at that point the crime has already been committed, hasn't it'

On a lighter note, the sprinkler systems are constantly on the fritz. If they're not broken and spraying water into tenants' windows, they're flooding the sidewalks and creating somewhat of a swamp of our grass. Which might explain why the broken glass in the lawn is so hard to see.

As a final complaint, let me tell you about the employee parking lot, excuse me, "roundabout" at the main entrance. While drivers are legally supposed to use this roundabout to maintain the flow of traffic, the managers and maintenance seem to find it a more suitable parking lot. For themselves. I cannot begin to tell you how many accidents have almost occurred because there isn't enough room for one car to enter and one car to exit at the same time.

Perhaps I'm being harsh. Maybe Brentwood isn't poorly-maintained, dangerous, and a terrible place for families. By all means, please, see for yourself.

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