Summary Review
---------------------
Overall, the accommodations and property management were acceptable, with some pluses and some minuses.
On the plus side, the condo was decorated stylishly, with a pleasant color scheme, and (with the exceptions of the bathroom and deck/yard) appeared neat and clean.
On the minus side, the bathroom, while appearing clean to the look, had the very unpleasant odor of old, stale urine. For those of you whose children who are teenage boys with lots of friends, you know the smell. It comes from standing up with inaccurate aim, if you know what I mean, and not thoroughly cleaning all of the porcelain joints, crevices, attachment bolts, wall, and floor, where all of the splatterings reach. Thorough cleaning does require extra effort, but it can be done. You know when it's cleaned right, as there are gas stations and fast food restaurants that have immaculate bathrooms, but serve the same sloppy male clientele.
The bathroom shower head was broken, only dribbling water. The property management company did fix the shower head within 24 hours, which is great, but it does speak to a lack of quality assurance in the post-stay cleaning/inspection cycle. You would think a basic checklist would verify the shower, bath, toilet, hvac, lights, etc. A bathroom light bulb was also out, which was not a big deal, but I only mention it as it was not fixed in 24 hours, even though it was reported along with the shower head.
The back doorwall, screen door, deck, and railings were strewn with cobwebs. The backyard had an old screen door and other litter on the grounds. As this was on the river, I understand the cobwebs building up each night, but, again, a new guest should have a clean deck, doorwall, and yard upon checkin. Naturally, the guest would have to keep it up each morning, which I did, but it's the initial impression upon checkin that was disappointing.
The location itself was a bit scary. I was a solo traveler, just a single guy, but I can tell you I was a bit wary of the whole area. The walk to downtown was about 15 minutes, and the natural path along the riverway was rundown with many homeless along the way, some congregated 10-15 deep beneath the overpass, just east of the capitol building. I needed to quickly redevelop my "street senses", constantly checking surroundings, looking back every so often, and crossing the street to avoid suspicious people. I definitely would not let my daughter stay here, even with a couple of friends. Even my sons I would caution to bring along some muscle.
The pool and exercise room were prominently marketed in the listing description and title, but were not available. A bit disappointing, as the first few days were hot and humid. The pool & exercise room were prominent reasons for selecting this property over other ones closer to downtown, so it did leave me feeling deceived.
One more thing -- not really the property's fault -- but the city water went out for about 4-5 hours one day. Plus another 2 hours of flushing the bath, toilets, kitchen sink, etc., as the water was brown & dirty for those 2 hours until clean water finally resumed. As I said, this wasn't the property's fault, but I did wonder how often this happened in this repurposed industrial area, with lots of construction going on.