Spark Millbury — Local services in Millbury

Spark Millbury is described by their development company as a luxury property, but it falls short in my opinion. The updated mill building is susceptible to moisture problems, so our unit had issues with a musty odor in both bedrooms where the brick walls were located. The vents were also covered in a black substance when we moved in. We put in a service request with maintenance, concerned that it was mold. They did clean them, but we never got to the bottom of it.

The property has been updated, but some things they clearly didn’t see the need to bother with were immediately obvious upon move-in. Our medicine cabinets looked like they were from the 70s/80s and smelled musty. Repairs were finished with contact paper. Both toilet tanks were filled with iron bacteria, causing black sludge to coat the bowl whenever they were flushed, so they had to be treated with citric acid. Appliances looked to be at least ten years old, with issues like a broken microwave display and peeling vinyl coating on the dishwasher rack that had been repaired over and over again. Our staircase, which was connected to our neighbor’s unit through the wall, was rickety and would pop whenever people in either unit went up or down them. The brick wall in the living room was coated with efflorescence around the door frame which would crumble and fall to the floor constantly - an issue I reported and was told a company would be brought in to fix but it never happened. If it sounds like I’m nitpicking, remember that this was sold to us as a luxury unit.

The property is unfortunately located in an area with poor water quality. Yes, this is out of their control, but prospective tenants should be aware. We noticed soon after moving in that a high amount of our neighbors were are on a water delivery subscription program, no doubt because the tap water tasted foul. We ended up doing the same throughout our lease term.

We rented a townhouse unit which had high ceilings and exposed duct work in the living room. Visually stunning, but in reality, a headache. The HVAC system is so loud. Every time it kicked on we’d have to crank the volume on our TV, then turn it way down whenever it kicked off. Gas costs were through the roof during the winter and electricity was just as bad during peak summer - even though both were used conservatively. Not only that, but our downstairs bedroom got half as much heat as the rest of the unit, so it was always cold. The final straw: our first lease renewal offer came in at a staggering 12% increase, and the leasing office told us they were unable to negotiate. We had no choice but to move after just one year.

We did appreciate the in-unit laundry, the copious amount of storage, the friendly mostly-senior community, the luxury amenities, and the attentiveness of the maintenance staff, but that was not enough. New paint on some cabinets and vinyl flooring does not justify those prices. I believe they have a lot of work to do if they want to compete with similarly priced, truly luxury options, of which there are plenty available in...

Great location, fantastic office staff, and AJ and Chase from maintenance are fantastic and make the flow of maintenance request fulfillment super easy and chill.

The good: Zoie and Aidan are awesome in the front office. The team is a really chill but attentive duo and never makes you feel like you're overburdening them. Super accommodating and make it easier to help you relax. AJ and Chase are probably the best dynamic duo since Venom and Eddie Brock. Maintenance requests, by their nature and in every place, are intrusive; but these two really make it easy to handle, are super respectful of your time and make the whole experience entertaining and enjoyable. Best part is the requests are finished to perfection when they're done. AJ's also super up front about what needs to be done and the range you can expect it to be done in. The unit itself is pretty awesome (town house) and the layout is unique but non-intrusive. A lot of space, relatively easy to clean and a great arena to call home.

Some improvements: Move-in paperwork was a little confusing, especially the parking bit and the water responsibility. Walls are thick, but you can still hear through them pretty easily if anyone elevates their volume. Could have something to do with the piping as well, since these buildings are pretty old. Still, it's a good idea to throw some light to moderate soundproofing on the wall and have some white noise in the background if you're particularly sensitive to sound. It doesn't get rid of it, but it helps.

All-in-all, I'd recommend this place to friends if they were looking for a good spot to be. I've lived in a lot of apartments, condos and town homes, and this one is by far the first to feel like home. Great...

Horrible!!! Over past few years place has gone down hill. Nobody’s ever in the leasing office and property managers change more often than they change the trash bags in their “dog park”..which is really a 10’x10’ fence behind the dumpster. This year they opened the pool after the Fourth of July even though when they give the tours they’ll tell you it’s open by Memorial Day. It also gets cleaned once a month and wouldn’t swim in it unless you’re dying to swim with bugs and bacteria. They are for sure a pet friendly place they don’t care if your animal pees, poops, or vomits in the hallway. In fact they’ll leave it there for display. With the change in management they must have forgotten there located next to a canal and might want pest control with the amount of rats you’ll see, this might explain the fly problem there having. Oh but don’t worry it has nothing to do with the sewage leaking from the ceiling when they put in the new meters. You can still see it in the ceiling tiles in the hallways. Some were worse and they eventually fell off the ceiling and they didn’t bother to replace. If your handicapped hope your fine using an entrance/exit on the opposite side of the building as there “elevator” always brakes and can’t get the part in for it. But don’t worry they threw up some printer paper so you know how you can get out of the building. (No wonder why they did this after there fire inspection). Way to expensive for living in an unsafe and unsanitary...