The REAL Apthorp Experience

I’ve read a lot of speculation about what it’s like to live at the fabled Apthorp – mostly by people who don’t live there. Well, I moved into one of the renovated apartments a year ago, and I’d like to share my experience with the building. I’m writing this particularly for anyone who is considering spending millions of dollars to live in one of the refurbished units like mine. Let’s start with... [more]

I’ve read a lot of speculation about what it’s like to live at the fabled Apthorp – mostly by people who don’t live there. Well, I moved into one of the renovated apartments a year ago, and I’d like to share my experience with the building. I’m writing this particularly for anyone who is considering spending millions of dollars to live in one of the refurbished units like mine. Let’s start with the positive aspects: First, some of the staff are genuinely kind and helpful men. The B Building doorman, Brooks, is an exceptional human being, always happy to see you, big smile – the kind of person you wish the earth were populated with. Likewise, Robert, the D building custodian has a wonderful disposition, he works hard, and always has a smile. Ariel, the daytime doorman in Building C is always happy, waving and greeting everyone, and is a pleasure. Some of the rest of the staff – Eric, Dennis, Richard, Remy – perform their jobs well and can generally be counted on to help when called upon. Second, the apartments themselves, the renovated ones, are spectacular. I have not seen the combination of tall ceilings, room capacities, salvaged architectural detail and gracious layouts like this anywhere else. This ends the list of positive aspects. Now, turning toward the matters that have more of an impact on your experience of living in the building: First, and without question most important, the building manager, Mike Gjelaj, and his assistant, Nicole Miles simply should not have their jobs. There is not a single worker on staff that I’ve spoken to, and that’s most of them, that respects Mike. There is no sense of discipline, and little professionalism among the staff. Some examples: 1) Mike himself can be found most days and most hours standing outside the back gate smoking and chatting with the myriad construction workers who come and go all day long; 2) Doormen talk, text, play games, and listen to music on their phones while they are on duty and this goes uncorrected; 3) Doormen are commonly asleep on the evening shift when you come from dinner or the theater; 4) Doormen often sit in the lobby chair, moving it into the corner where it’s nowhere near the door they are supposed to be attending; 5) Doormen frequently are not even in the lobby. In our building, the daytime doorman simply was not in the lobby the vast majority of the time. The result of all of this is the doormen don’t do the one job they are presumably there to do: open the door. If I had to guess the percent of times a doorman actually opened the door for me, either coming or going over the past year, I think a realistic estimate would be less than 10% of the time. So, you arrive home with groceries, packages, dry-cleaning? Good luck…you’re on your own. Some of the doormen have two day jobs, so they will work at another building from 8am to 4pm, then rush over to the Apthorp where they take up their duties from 4pm to midnight. Of course they fall asleep, get sick, can’t stand up, have to talk on the phone to make arrangements life requires. My question is, why do we pay thousands of dollars every month for service that is promised but not provided? Nicole Miles, the office assistant, is another dangerously weak link. Most often, she will not even respond to an email request. She treats every interrogatory as a threat or a bother and, incredibly, she lies about very important issues. Example: before we signed the papers that would begin our residency, we asked for the status of every apartment above, below, and on either side of us to try to gauge the potential noise that might be created via construction projects. This was incredibly important since one of us works from home, and quiet for phone conversations is imperative. Nicole gave us the status of each apartment, basically assuring us there would be no work. About a month after we moved in, a complete year-long renovation started on the apartment above ours, resulting most weekdays in noise starting at 8am (work is not supposed to begin at the Apthorp until 9am) and continuing straight through until 5pm. Imagine noise so loud you literally cannot hear someone on the phone. In addition to this noise, there are so many apartments being renovated at the Apthorp that you can never get an elevator. Construction workers, tired of waiting for the service elevator, take the main passenger elevator. Naturally, the doormen do nothing to stop or discourage this. There is dirt everywhere, and the language that you will hear every day in the central courtyard is truly disgusting. Again, the management is ineffective, so no attempts are made to control this. Quite the opposite, the building manager seems to revel in befriending these foulmouthed workers. It is truly astonishing to walk in and out of a building that costs what it does, and to be treated to this kind of behavior with no one in charge. Other topics have been covered by others at length, and they are all true: you can fill up a water glass with brown sludge that comes out of your kitchen sink, you can go without heat for over a week before the building will fix it. Yes, at Christmas and New Years, we had NO HEAT – NONE – for nine days. At no point did anyone tell us they were working on this problem, most likely because they were not, and there was no follow up at all. Ramos, the head engineer, was never able to fix anything we called him about. And when they tell you something will be fixed – a loose front door handle, for example – you will never hear from the building staff again. It is not uncommon to walk through the courtyard and find a resident screaming in exasperation at one of the building maintenance staff. And you empathize, because again, you cannot believe that the maintenance fees we pay cannot afford a higher quality staff. The building manager lives in a free, multi-million dollar apartment and draws a salary of nearly a quarter of a million dollars a year. Why are we not able to get someone who actually can manage this building and its staff, set an example, and make the experience of living at the Apthorp everything the marketing materials assure us it will be? The Apthorp looks to sell its renovated units for about $2,100-$2,400 a square foot. They claim parity to well-known Upper East Side buildings that get these amounts. The problem is, while the units themselves are beautiful, the building in which they exist is poorly managed. If I knew then what I know today, I would not pay more than half what I did. Half. So, if you are considering the Apthorp as a potential residence, look past the beautiful gates and the impressive courtyard. Ignore the claims of similarity with other well-known buildings that charge top prices. Instead, focus on what your day-to-day experience is going to be like living there: you’re on your own, the staff is unmotivated and unmanaged, the management office is incompetent and the infrastructure is so old that you will live with constant headaches such as no water for 14 hours straight, no heat, windows that do nothing to block the amazingly loud noise coming from Broadway, etc, etc. Maybe in another 20 years the Apthorp will be ready for prime time; until then, take the advice of someone who made the mistake and steer clear. [less]