The Forge — Local services in New York

Location: I’ve been living at the forge for the past year and a half and have to say its been one of the best rental experiences I’ve had to date. I’ve lived in the LIC/Astoria area for the past 4.5 years so I’m fairly familiar with the neighborhood. The Forge is located on a bit of a quiet street so there’s not a ton of traffic in front of the building (save for move ins/outs) but its proximity to the city and ease of access (7 train lines, the 59th st bridge, the Midtown tunnel, LIE) is phenomenal and super convenient. Theres tons of restaurants and bars nearby. Literally an amazing one down the block. Its about a ten minute walk to the gantries and the hunters point south ferry station.

The Building: Its not a HUGE building (approx. 250-300 unit). Its still small enough that its easy to know a good amount of your neighbors and make some great friends. The units are spacious and have in unit washer/dryers, modern appliances and a modern industrial feel. The Forge was built with Feng Shui in mind but you’ll get used to the odd elevator/floor numberings. The amenity spaces are large and plentiful. Its rarely crowded and everyone is respectful of each other when it gets busier. I think the thing I appreciate the most is the family feel between all the residents as well.

The People: The guys who work there (Angel M, Angel R, Ben, Ritchie, Vernon, Manny, Eric, Ali, Shawn, Rob and Manny – and there are a few new people I haven’t interacted too much with yet) are so good at taking care of us like family. They literally go out of their way to make sure everything is ok to the best of their ability. I have no idea how they do it but they know everyone in the building and literally are like family in that they always remember what’s going on in your life (if you talk to them about things like that). The guys always make sure that the building is immaculate – whether its cleaning the windows or the floors to making sure the common areas are super clean. The community manager Aileen does a great job in setting up events for all of us and keeping us updated of all the fun things available to us (free ice cream and pizza parties; movie nights, community discounts etc).

The Not So Fun Part: I keep things honest, so FULL DISCLOSURE: Keeping in mind it’s a new construction – you have to understand things will go wrong. The buildings about 1-2 years old so its settled in and been through the worst of all the seasons. We’ve definitely had some water issues (leaks/hot water maintenance) and elevator issues (downtime due to maintenance). NO building is perfect. That being said, its something that will happen to every building – rental and owned, new and old – and Management has been pretty communicative about down times and its definitely better than some of the other buildings I’ve had the misfortune of being in. The guys are respectful of my home when they need to come in to fix things. While down times/issues ARE NOT THEIR FAULT, they will go out of their way to make sure things are fixed as fast as reasonably possible.

Honestly, they’ll even go out of their way to help with things they’re not responsible for. That’s how kind and thoughtful they are. All you really have to do is ask.

TL:DR My experience with the Forge, for what it is, has been great. I feel safe living there and it’s a place of respite when I come home from a long day. Its as close to perfect as it can reasonably be and I’m glad I pulled the trigger on...

HORRIBLE HORRIBLE experience living in The Forge! Your space will be intrude without being notified. I moved in more than a year ago. At the night I moved in to my apartment I got really bad allergy because my air condition was not cleaned and full of dust and stones left from construction. The hot water in this building frequently went off for the first year. Elevators are also constantly not working. Now just recently the whole building is having leaking problem. After the leaking problem, that night I came home late after long day work, and found THREE Drying machines all crowded in my tiny bathroom running with loud noises. I was not got notified that my room will have this situation before I went home. Front desk explained leasing office has sent out email about the leaking problem but it is for everyone in the building and the email was sent around 8-10pm. There's no email or phone call for me about my room will have three machine with loud noises and needs to run non-stop for 48 hours.I have to find a place to live in the middle of the night. I asked office to call me for MANY times. For now I havent received any response. Only received an email from leasing office but she sounds very indifference to me. The very next day when I got home, my room was intruded again without letting me know. A piece of my bathroom celling was removed. My bathroom sink is now covered with dust. And since they did not let me know before hand. Now everything on my sink has to be cleaned and changed including my toothbrush and contact container. Still haven't received any phone call from them. I do not recommend anyone to live in this building. UPDATE** They still entering my apartment without calling me ahead, eventho I asked four times already! I found a dirty towel on my kitchen sink that they left after construction. Spoke with one of the person in charge today. Their attitude changed after a week. Basically what they said is, and I quote: " You still have a place to stay in, the leaking issue was only happened in a SMALL space in your apartment." "Other residences needed to stay in hotel for about two weeks, but you still could stay in your apartment." And I asked if they paid for those people's stay in hotel, they said they did not. And when I tried to talk to them, their words to me is very defensive. If you want to live in this building pray nothing will happen in your apartment. Because when issue happened they won't think that its is their responsibility for what happened. What they replied was " you are tied with contract". BE REALLY CAREFUL when you decide to move into this building. I never try to leave any bad reviews, this is the first time that I really want to leave such long review. No matter how nice you see them reply on Google, you will receive different treatment when you speak to them. I have tried to cooperate with them, but they did not...

TLDR: Community Living, Luxury Lifestyle

EDIT: 10/13/2023. Another year, another instant renew of the lease. I’m still in love with the Forge and in particular this time, I’d like to highlight our community manager, Miriam. She’s taken everything I love about the Forge and dialed it up another notch. Community events have raised in both frequency and popularity. There’s been huge variety from flower making classes, to pool parties, to Chinese New Year celebrations with Lion Dances. She’s made the place feel at home with the seasonal decor and management has been very responsive with tenant suggestions. We just got a Smith Machine! My buddy wants me to join a gym with him but I won’t because ours is just too nice. If you do a tour, don’t forget to check it out. Once again, 10/10.

I've been my fair share of places: UWS, midtown, Greenpoint, and even across the street at Jackson Park, but I can honestly say this is the place feels most like home. The building is beautifully designed and its intentional. the kitchen is gorgeous and each apartment was designed, rather than placed. I loved my time at JP, but each room feels like a jigsaw piece. They had an area they decided to fill, rather than they designed a layout and build it. Over here I have a full sized fridge, oven, TONS of storage space and real (oak?) wood floors.

Moving on. This feels like a community because its just the right size and managed by just the right people. The doormen are incredibly kind (frankly everywhere in NYC has had amazing doormen. Its like the one constant in this city), and the other staff are competent and knowledgeable. For instance our AMAZING leasing agent Will tackles each tour with detailed information, energy, and professionalism. I'll catch him around the building and he can literally tell you each person, in each unit. There's like 36 floors and this guy can tell you who is where. It's because for him, we're actual people instead of just numbers. That's pretty cool. (PS shoutout to Manny, Roy, Ali, and all the doormen)

Wrapping up, there's a few things I miss from other places. I miss keyless entry and touches elevators from JP. I miss big rooftops (be honest with yourself. How often do you go on roofs anyways?). I miss having a wide food selection. This is being addressed. When I moved to LIC three years ago we had Sapps sushi. Now new places are springing up like crazy. We're getting a Trader Joes in a few months!!! So all y'all incoming people, don't expect Manhattan level access but know that this place really is up and coming, and you're already on the better side of it. Few years ago it would have been hard to recommend.

Take a tour. Meet up with Will. Worst thing that could happen is you'll see a nice building and hang out with a cool dude for a half an hour. Best thing is you'll find a luxury high-rise that...