The Weekend in Review: Part I

Part I

Saturday morning I woke up at 5 AM and prepared for my 5 hour drive to St Louis for apartment finding purposes.  I had it all planned out...

1. Shower.  Check

2. Eat a quick breakfast (yogurt, almonds, and high-fiber cereal) Check

3. Grab my packed overnight bag and a cup of coffee.  Check

4. Pick up my friend Court who the night before had agreed to visit St Louis with me.  Che...

I called Court at 6:30 to tell him I'd be a little late picking him up at his house in Flossmoor, IL. He answered almost immediately sounding surprisingly awake.  "Court, I'll be there in ten minutes," I said.  "Oh man, I must have messed up somewhere Jim.  I thought you were leaving in the evening," Court said in a sorry tone.  I knew this was my fault as I didn't specify the time of day when asking him to come the night before.  I guess I assumed that if I were going down to see apartments, I wouldn't be seeing them Saturday night.  "No problem, I understand. One thing... What are you doing up at 6:30 in the morning man?" I asked.  He didn't answer.  I'll probably never know.

The drive wasn't bad save for the torrential rainfall and car-sized potholes recently broken up from the thaw the night before.  It slowed me down a bit, but no matter, I still made it in time for my first appointment Saturday at 11:30.  

I met Jen the property manager of the Fashion Square Lofts at the front door of the massive building.  On either side of the front door are what I'm pretty sure were two separate underwear stores.  The lobby itself was very cool and obviously restored. 

I had contacted Jen beforehand so she was aware that I wanted to see the Grace Lofts as well which are owned by the same developer, the McGowan Brothers.  She thought it best to see it those first so we walked almost directly across the street and entered the noticeably smaller building.  Inside was, of course, very nice as most of the downtown loft buildings tend to be.  I saw a 1 bedroom on the top floor that featured a skylight and fireplace.  I definitely liked it but it was a little more than I wanted to spend.  Not that I had a real limit.  I'm looking for value.  If I'm going to spend serious money I want serious perks.

Grace Lofts

Next, Jen and I went back over to the Fashion Square Lofts and I saw three more lofts.  These feature stained concrete floors and large windows.  All of them along with Grace had a W/D included.  I can't say these blew me away although there was a nice pool on the roof with fantastic views. Unfortunately I couldn't stay up there long because the weather was really picking up.  More on that later.  Sorry, no pics on this or the next one.  I just wasn't thinking about it at the time.

After thanking Jen for showing me around my next appointment was at Roberts Gallerie Lofts. There isn't much information on these online because they are so new.  In fact, it took me good 15 minutes of calling around to get to the right person. (The general number of these Lofts goes to a recording that doesn't seem to get listened to)  I met a great gentleman there named Truet who showed be around.  The cool thing about this building is that there are no two apartments the same.  They are well designed too and nicely decorated.  They just weren't for me.  They had a more finished feel to them and I was looking for something a little more rugged.  These would be great for a family though. 

By the time I had finished this tour I could hear the rain pounding outside.  My car was about two blocks away and I needed to head over to Soulard to meet with Red Brick Management.  I tried hopping form one overhand to the next but it was no use.  I waited till there was a lull and I made a break for it.  I made it to the car somewhat dry... This time.

Part II soon to follow.