Bayonne Family YMCA — Local services in Bayonne

UPDATE: Though (approximately) 60 men live in this one building, BFCC management hasn't posted a single recommendation for how to keep safe during the current you-know-what other than a note warning residents to cover our faces when we pick up mail or pay our rent. Guess who the note does not apply to? Staffers. Go to the lobby for anything and 9 times out of 10 you get to see the entire face of the person you're dealing with. Management did decide it was important to post multiple signs warning us not to use the main stairwell to get to the lobby, because, y'know, RULES. Nice set of priorities there.

There are crazy rumors (see that other, really strange review) floating around regarding this place, so as an 8-year (plus) resident, I thought I'd address them in a sane way.

A news story from 2009 confirms that BFCC management decided to sever their ties with the Y's organization. But some of the Y's rules still apply here, while some don't. The Y and BFCC have the same rules regarding visitors: they're not allowed upstairs or in your room. Windows here are sealed shut and residents are not allowed to open them, same as the YMCA. But at the Y, residents have access to the gym facilities. BFCC residents do not have that privilege. And BFCC residents must enter through a side door, never the main entrance (this is stressed when you move in). Though our rents are (obviously) the single biggest source of income for the BFCC, we are nonetheless treated like second-class citizens.

Aside from the women who make up the day staff and management, the other employees here are men who are also (generally) residents and they do their jobs pretty well. The place probably could use a professional security guard in the evening and on the weekends but no one's hanging around inside the building and intimidating/harassing others.

The number of toilet and shower stalls seems good for the amount of guys we have living here. I've never needed to "go" and found myself stuck for a spot. The bathrooms could be cleaner, but that's not really the fault of janitorial staff. Some residents here are lazy slobs + some are just not able to take care of themselves. Why BFCC management allows them in when they do not have staff on hand to clean up behind them is a question I have no answer for, but this contributes to the messiness of the bathrooms.

The rent's cheap considering the location (Hudson-Bergen Lightrail station is right across the street). The building is pretty solid - sound doesn't carry for the most part, though heating and air conditioning piping that runs through the rooms can sometimes carry noise from one room to another. My fellow residents are retirees, gentlemen with medical disabilities + a small number of guys who would be better off in a nuthouse. Maybe a third of the residents are gainfully employed (raises hand). If you've got a job, you may find yourself living next door to some joker who doesn't work and who watches television at all hours of the night, which you may have to listen to, depending on how the pipes are connected between your room and his. Just a warning.

A person looking for a cheap room could do a lot worse than the BFCC. It's not great, but it's decent. If you're a single guy who can't afford a studio apartment in the current market, the BFCC is still a better deal than most rooming...

This is the shitest and dirtiest gym in the entire Arm Pit of America. And the customer base they will steal your keys if they can in just two months robbed twice in the locker room. They will steal your underwear. Trust me on that. Also machines are old, rusty and weights are dirty as hell. I thought I will save some bucks but ended up lost 3 times had I joined a reasonable other establishment. And the old man at the front desk behave as if you are using gym for free or if it is his private property and he is giving you a big favor. What they sell hot tub ( full of roaches), steam room (broken), sauna ( no temperature control) swimming...

Never put your child in the childcare. My four year old came home with marks on her hands as if someone was pinching her. She told me her teacher did it. I confronted the office and they told me the teacher might scream at the kids but she would never do that. So basically she admitted that the teacher has a temper but would never hurt a kid? They refused to do an...