MAA 220 Riverside — Local services in Jacksonville

If things stay the course MAA 220 Riverside property management is functional. However, when an emergency occurs, they fall apart. My current issue is a leaking roof/ceiling AND a broken AC unit that is going on 4 weeks and with at least another week. Ms. Michelle (property manager) is pleasant to work with and knowledgeable but she is gone (vacation, conference, days off) when the emergencies occur. Her staff is ill-equipment to manage the emergencies in her absence. Mr. Erin (asst. property manager), which I read from the other reviews is pleasant and good to work with (assuming during the move-in process). Try working with him in an abnormal situation, the praises will definitely end. Mr. Erin is a parrot. Mr. Erin just repeats what is told to him and cannot cognitively think or function on his own.

The timeline is long, but if you don’t believe my statements you can see it from their actions/inactions.

9/4 – Roof leak occurs late night and emergency maintenance came to inspect. Note - Jax would have rain for two weeks straight. 9/5 – Michelle lets us know a roof vendor is needed and will be in the next day. No water containment devices provided. 9/6 – No update by noon, so I call and her staff says Michelle has left for the day/out the next week and they have not heard from the roof vendor. After work, my partner talked to Erin who hasn’t heard from the roof vendor and foolishly suggests we call emergency maintenance if more water leaks in. 9/8 – More water leaks in. 9/10 – Called for updates, the staff and Erin are confused when the roof vendor will be in. 9/12 – Erin finally says they are “closely working with our roofing vendors”. We ask about provisions for the leak and got no further responses. 9/16 – Michelle returns and gives roof repair info and asks about water damage/repairs. 9/17 – Michelle says the roof vendor will do the repairs on 9/19 pending weather. 9/18 – We email Michelle the water damage and she informs she will be leaving today at 11AM and will be out the rest the week for a conference. 9/19 – No updates all day, I go into the leasing office. The staff says that Erin has left for the day and they don’t know how to contact the roof vendor. 9/23 – After an additional 5 days of not knowing, Michelle emails the roof is repaired and asks when to do the water damage repairs. 9/24 – Tell Michelle that 10/3 would be good since a hurricane is passing by and the roof could leak again. 9/26 - Hurricane passes Jax and no roof leaks. 9/27 – Friday we wake up to the AC not working and complete maintenance request. Michelle emails us that AC had no freon and was refilled and that an AC vendor will be in Monday. I track that the AC isn’t as cooling quickly and I ask Michelle to have the vendor come Saturday. She states she will keep the Monday time. I ask if maintenance will check and refill the AC unit over the weekend and get no more responses. 9/30 – Midday Erin emails us saying the AC vendor found the cooling coils leaks, a portable AC unit will be placed in the apartment, and the new cooling coil will take 3-4 days. Immediately, I replied to Erin why can’t the existing AC be refilled and why is a portable AC unit used (its loud and not as effective). With no response by end of day, I talk to Erin which he just states Michelle is out for the day; there isn’t much he can’t do without her; and that I have to complete out a maintenance request if I want the existing AC filled and that he can’t do the request himself. I reciprocate to him about his ineffective response times and answers and he begrudgingly says he will ask maintenance to fill the existing AC. After, I filled out a request to fill the existing AC anyways. The AC was never filled. 10/1 – Michelle returns and states the AC cannot be refilled due to EPA regulations, the cooling coils will take longer, and is trying to get a second AC unit.

If you have read it this far, you will understand why I am giving MAA 220 Riverside a 1 Star Review, as I am typing from my loud and not cool apartment at 6AM on...

No longer stranded we love it here! Just Renewed. The staff have been great to us. Love the floors vs carpet! Love the granite countertops lots of cabinet space. After 2 years at The Strand and with the outdated interiors...low grade carpet and receptionist that are called concierges...( They have no clue) is night and day moving here. I've found Zen. I love our community. Everyone is nice and we have great cookouts at the pool deck kitchen, another thing the Strand lacks... No where to cook on the pool deck they have dirty grills with no shade. Hello it's Florida ever heard of a sun shades and 220 has them over each grill which also come with room to share and cook your meals at! A real outdoor Kitchen with sink and frig gas grills bar seating. Granite countertops here too. The infinity pool! It's saltwater! It's gorgeous. We like the 10 pm lockdown so you can't have crazy in the pool or elsewhere... And we don't miss the touted "concierge" services at all moving here. It's a pleasure being able to have guest have parking...free. The Strand had no guest parking unless it's the weekend or after 4pm...I never understood that rule.

Having the walkable attractions, shopping etc at 220 vs The Strand far out number what is offered in San Marco South Bank area. Brooklyn and 5 points as well as urban core are all more accessable. The river walk and the arts market are fun and the car shows at the Times Union... Just more to do. Weekends on the plaza with live bands is really nice. Hoping the beer garden comes soon! Brixx pizza and Hob Nob onsite great dining. Freshmarket being next door has saved us more in money than their slightly higher prices just because we shop there several times a week get the sales and avoid that trip to other markets when we have the combination of the arts market on the weekends. Plus we get to walk. All of Brooklyn Station shopping and dining 1 block away.

Dog friendly with a pet dedicated salon DIY station! How cool. Free wifi with your rent! I live in the Riverside unit love everything about it. So much more comfortable here though I downsized from 1200+ at the Strand... It's all in the details ... No sick building. We noticed our allergies cleared up and now we can only attribute 2 years of a sick moldy build

No power lost during hurricane Matthew!

The Strand had issues with trash and dog urine in elevators and stairwells. That's a people problem. 220 DNA tests and fines for this. 220 residents are not forced to deal with amenities being rented out with large loud parties. Plaza features primarily charity events and runs once a month.

We like the pool room we love pool it's a date night thing. Here it's nice with TVs to watch sports play knowing you can come back and you're not going to be told no... You can't go here it's rented out. Shame on the Strand for treating residents as such. Their security was lacking...cars broke into. Garage Doors broken on a monthly basis at the Strand. I like the valet trash services here at 220. They pick up for you 5 nights a week.

I have to add if you are looking... The tap water here is better... as I don't have spots on my glasses after washing. I have better appliance's all around. No fiber glass tub. A real ceramic tub! Deep stainless sinks! Gooseneck kitchen spray faucets. Triple the storage of the Strand in the kitchens. Plus bath area. Freddie, Noah, Dianna and Beth A+++++ thank you for a smooth transfer and renewel happy to stay another...

I have lived here for two years, ever since they opened in May of 2015. I will start with the positives because there are a couple...

The location is great. Easy access to freeways, lots of fun things to do in the immediate area (restaurants, downtown, 5 points, king st).

Amenities (this only partially counts as i will explain in a moment). The parking garage, when working, is great and very secure. The pool deck is top notch with a great view and several outdoor grills. The lounge area has billiards, TVs (which don't always work), and a bar area (which is sometimes a mess after people host parties and do not clean up).

Maintenance crew has been responsive and helpful when things break.

Pet friendly, but they will be watching you like a hawk to try and find a reason to fine you for your furry friend's accidents.

Now for the negatives.

To start, this place has gone through at least 4 managers since being opened for two years, which should give you a hint as to how 220 operates. Management will listen to your requests/complaints, but will give you the line "There's nothing I can do, that is controlled by corporate". If that's the case, I wonder what the property manager's actual job is?

When signing a lease, 220 will absolve themselves of all issues/problems that occur to you or your property, so just beware that if anything gets stolen, it doesn't matter if their systems weren't working, they won't help you.

The fire alarms used to go off 3-4 times a month on a regular basis for the first year or so. Since then, and after several "repairs", they seem to be working now.

The elevators do not work on occasion. Sometimes the door bangs when closing, or the elevators just stop completely. This only occurs maybe once every other month, but it is an inconvenience that has not been fixed yet.

The power goes out from time to time, but it is not concurrent with bad weather or storms. This is happens maybe 3-4 times a year. Ironically, 220 gets some minor brownie points for not losing power during Hurricane Matthew. Congrats I guess.

Plumbing can be faulty. Several people have had issues with leaky dishwashers, washing machines, window seals, and balcony doors. Also, the pool is on the second floor above the garage and the pipes had a leak once, causing some minor flooding in the garage area.

Price. This is up to you if you want to consider this a negative. From what I can tell, they are the priciest complex in the area, and it's not stopping. Both times I renewed, they upped my rent.

Fixtures in the apartment are cheap. My window blinds have fallen on two separate occasions because of the plastic brackets holding them. Just recently, the four bulb light fixture in the kitchen hallway fell out and was dangling by two thin wires.

I have a sixth floor apartment, but whenever I am in apartments on lower floors, I can easily hear anything going on in the apartment above. I rarely hear anything in the next door apartments.

Hopefully these problems are fixed for future residents, but I regret ever...