1600 East Avenue Apartments

I loved every minute of living here. There are so many perks that come along with this apartment building, which is why it was so sad leaving. The only downside (for us) was that it’s an apartment so we quickly grew out of the space and had to move to something with 3 floors and a basement just to fit all our stuff. Regardless, I’ll go on telling the love story of our stay at 1600 for three years.
This was our first time living together as a couple (aww). We couldn’t find anything that met our needs until Willy stumbled on 1600 East. It was in our price range at the time — our rent for a one bedroom was $ 1000 (split $ 500 each) with nearly everything included… I’ll get to that in a minute. When we rode the elevator to the 9^th floor and looked out at the view of East Ave and Cobbs Hill, we knew we found the place.
All the perks:
— We lived on the 9^th floor so the view was amazing. Literally it’s what sold us on the place.
— It was super clean and newly renovated — new stove, dishwasher, microwave, fridge, cherry wood cabinets. We kept the carpet (new), but most apts have gorgeous wood floors.
— Kitchen was small, but opened up into the living room so we made it work. Still good for entertaining in that sense and made it seem less constricting. It fit most of our stuff… until the bigger appliances like Kitchen Aid Mixer, bread machine, and crock pot were Christmas gifted to us.
— Lots of closet space considering the space. Enough to store all my suitcases and holiday decorations with room to spare.
— There’s a gym downstairs — it’s small, but has two treadmills, two bikes, a few weight machines, an elliptical, and room to do abs/​stretch. *Super convenient since all I had to do was ride the elevator downstairs to get a quick workout without leaving the building*
— Basic cable, heat & A/​C, electric all included in rent. We paid ~$ 60 – 70 every 3 months for water, which I think is now included for new tenants. We upgraded cable & internet.
— They have storage units in the garage — costs extra per month, but not too expensive. I think Willy paid $ 35/​mo. for a large unit.
— I recommend living on the East Ave side — gorgeous views. Although you will hear the crows that lay claim to the giant tree in front in the wee hours of the morning. The University side has the train. Take your pick.
— Awesome back patio with grills and tables.
— Party space you can reserve or hang out in – theater room, kitchen area, billiards room.
— Concierge service — Cole is the best! They also deliver your packages to your door. A nice gesture.
— Garbage and recycling taken care of by the building — all your have to do is bring it to a room on the 1^st floor. Plus a garbage chute for the little things.
— Mail chute — never realized how convenient that was until now.
— They allow cats — but there’s an extra $ 25 fee/​mo.
— Easy rent payment online or autopay.
— Their staff shovels and plows in the winter.
— SO soundproof. You can’t hear anything ever.
— Property manager kept the place in tip top shape! And threw parties for the tenants — summer and holiday party — with free raffles to win kick ass prizes like flat screen tvs and game systems.
— Good mix of people. When we first moved in a lot of people assumed it was an old folks place, but we lived down a hall with mostly 20-​somethings. There are a few tenants that are older, but they’re fun to talk to and have lived there for years.
Downsides:
— A one-​bedroom was small after we accumulated lots of stuff and both started working from home. We needed office space and more storage.
— Transitioning to a two-​bedroom was out of our budget and didn’t seem like a worthy expense just for the 2^nd room.
— It’s hot all the time. We were on the 9^th floor and sometimes had to open our windows in the winter to get some fresh air because it was often pushing 74 from the heat rising from other apartments, also it’s a small space that warms up quickly. I recommend a humidifier in the winter and fans.
— Laundromat-​style laundry. Never had any issues, just a pain and reminiscent of my college days. The upside is that nothing was ever stolen. Just set a timer when your stuff is done because people may remove your clothes from the washer/​dryer if too much time has passed.
All in all, I miss this place a lot. Saying farewell was like the end of an era… like the Friends finale. I may have shed a tear.
Couples — consider it for your first apartment…