Spectrum South End Apartments

i'm going to agree with most of the posts you read about this place, both on the positive and negative sides, and am just opting to throw my input out there as well as another voice in the crowd. Been at spectrum for about 4 months now, by month 3 the fun of being at a new place had worn off and we already knew that come lease renewal, we would not be renewing. Give it a month and you will start to see what an architectural mess this place really is. It's considered 'new' and looks it from the outside, but this place is falling apart. not to mention small issues on how the place was built. Lights everywhere in the apartment, but there isn't on overhead in the main living room area which becomes annoyingly dark....drawers rub on the appliances when you pull them out because they weren't sized appropriately. and the biggest, main issue of them all. Noise. This place is an echo chamber and the walls are thin enough to drive you crazy. Look, I understand apartment/complex living, but this takes the cake. Last night I heard someone cough through the wall on the other side. Regularly we can hear conversations/arguments in the late night and the people above us sound like they are moving on a regular basis. It is true and be careful if renting a place on the pool area....it turns into a vegas pool club during the weekends, loud music, drinking all day, you'll never find a spot to lay out, etc.....i'm not a prude, its not all that bad if you are looking for fun, but just know that little tid-bit Haven't experienced or seen any car break-ins so can't comment on that There is a new security guy on patrol, but he just wanders the property and I don't see the entire purpose, he's either sitting in the parking garage or roaming the halls. The parking deck is a nightmare and was built about 20 feet too small. You can hardly take a corner if someone if coming the other way around a turn. The grill area looks nice and we have enjoyed that, but regularly a grill is broken or out of service, and if you're grilling in the evening (i don't mean midnight) bring a flashlight, there is no outdoor lighting by the grills - there are lights there but they aren't/never were connected to a power source. Lighting outside around the building, specifically the dog park is terrible. Again, there are lights there but they are never in use - it backs onto an undeveloped/partially wooded area....deserves some lighting to make the space feel safe - would not want to be a girl who has to take her dogs out at night Dog park is terrible and don't let them make you think they are animal friendly - they will tote about the park, etc...but its a nightmare, dogs are regularly getting sick and again, the architectural genius who set it up should be fired - its more of a kennel run than a park. Also they have let in a couple pit-bulls lately (supposed to be no aggressive breeds) and one of them did attack another dog recently. Spectrum has yet to deal with the issue. you'll find beer cans, garbage almost everywhere, the other day I came out my apartment to find throw-up in the hallway. The hallways are never kept clean nor is the surrounding property - The first floor is done up nicer than the rest of the floors. All in all - there is just no maintenance. kitchens are nice, for the most part the apartments are a decent size although i think for the money they could be a tad bigger. True, you can't beat the location really. It's easy to get to the rail system and numerous bars/restaurants in close proximity. more

We have lived here for almost 2 years and have watched the speedy decline of what started off as a great place. When we ""applied"" to live here they were just finishing up the new wing of the building. We were allowed to pick what apartment we wanted. The application process with pretty thorough. They told us that they were just trying to make sure they were getting ""professional"" tenants that would not be a problem. We were both actually very grateful for this. Something has obviously changed in this screening process. Our original neighbors were adults who were courteous and quiet and have been replaced by twenty somethings who seem to live the lives of Lindsey Lohan.\r \r Positives:\r 1.)Nice kitchen with granite counter tops and island\r 2.)The salt water lap pool, not the ""party"" pool, BUT the only time it doesn't look like a pool in Vegas is before 11am.\r 3.) The front desk and maintenance staff are very nice and try the best they can. They have fixed any problems we have had and have been very sympathetic to any of our complaints.They ultimately seem to be handcuffed by a higher being.\r 4.) Location is great. Walking distance to The Common Market, Uptown, etc.\r 5.) We have found $60 and $25 on the ground in the hallway and parking lot.\r \r Negatives:\r 1.) I have had my car rummaged through (inside the gates) and my bike stolen.This morning there was a SUV with a bashed in window that had been broken into so I now leave my car unlocked with no possessions inside.\r 2.) Parking....this coincides with number one. There is obviously not enough parking for the amount of tenants and all of the party monsters that live here buzz their buddy's through the gate. The result of this is having to park in the guest parking which WILL lead to your car being broken into. The entire parking area looks like Mumbai. There literally is either a PBR can or McDonald's wrapper in every slot. The gate has been broke multiple times which once again allows all sorts of riff raff to come in at their leisure.\r 3.) Security...We used to have it. They used to have a security guard who was pretty good at monitoring the above. He would make sure that car were not funneling through the gate and automobiles were not being looted like the LA riots. Now there is nothing? I guess management has not deemed all of the break ins and keggers important enough to monitor.\r 4.) NOISE!!! Wow, where do I begin. The hallways must have been designed by a prison architect. They are the most acoustic, door slam reverberating, echo chambers that have ever been designed. \r Every door spring must be set to SLAM! If you are not on the top floor buy headphones. Seriously, I can recommend multiple brands. It sounds like elephants are line dancing every night.\r 5.) Dog Park. When we moved in we were not informed that our main view would be of a Nicole Ritchie look-a-like on her cell phone screaming ""Come here Sascha"" to her Yorkie. It is the most ridiculous collection of college kids with unleashed dogs ruining what was gorgeous landscaping. I actually have come to enjoy the roar of the Light Rail because it at least mutes the phone conversation of some frat boy rehashing how wasted he got last night with his ""brah"".\r 6.) Grill area? This area is pretty comical. They have two infrared grills that will not allow you to keep the lid closed for more than six minute or some obscure time. You can not preheat the grill long enough to cook anything. One grill is also always broken and they both usually have the left overs on the grates from the inconsiderate douche before you. There is also a really nice outdoor 40"" Flat-screen TV that has not been connected or worked in a year and a half.\r \r I will quit now because my ears are getting red again. If you do not heed my warning but gain one thing from this and all other reviews of Spectrum South End let it be this: buy a hundred count of earplugs at Blackhawk Hardware on Park Road it will help. more

The entrance is deceiving! The rest of the building looks like crap!!! If you're thinking about moving here: BEWARE. There's a lot of noise. They don't take care of the building, materials used in the units are cheap and it's like dogs gone wild throughout the ""garden areas"" with poop and piss EVERYWHERE! If you are in your early 20's or just out of college then this may be the perfect place for you! It's like an extended college dorm. Horrible place to live - especially for the money! more

Location is great for being on the lightrail and surrounded by restaurants and the farmers market. Management is nice and willing to help, but that is complimented by the poor build quality and noisy tenants. As soon as we moved in, we noticed the build quality was not up to par. Noise echos down hallways and in lower apartments. About 6 months into our lease a PLASTIC plastic pipe broke (building was only a year old at this time by the way) above us after the tenant left and flooded our apartment. They ""fixed"" the dry wall but we can still see seams and our doors don't shut due to the ground settling. In the year that we've lived here, I have seen more and more rowdy unprofessional people that are generally disrespectful of the property. How do I know? Broken glass in the pool, used condoms/vomit in the hallway, people screaming outside in the middle of the night, trash all over the property, hitting/knock off the hinges of the garage door gate and tenants not cleaning up after their pets. We haven't experience any crimes, but we have heard of not-so-pleasant stories around the neighborhood. It is amazing to us that for the price they charge more people don't respect their surrounding, people and property included. more

The Spectrum has to be the noisiest apartment complex I have lived in. Every other apartment has a dog, or two, and they all bark 24 hours a day.......non stop. The owners just dont care, and the staff do nothing about it. The hallways are like echo chambers and every sound is magnified 10x. You will be able to hear everything thing your neighbors do since the ceilings seem like they are 1/2"" thick. Oh.....and if you walk out back you will get the most intense smell of dog crap. Yes this is where these dog lovers allow their pooches to drop one and dont pick it up. There are two grills......yet there is always one that does not work. With roughly 200 apartments you can expect to grill your food at the wee hours in the morning. more

Pros: \r 1. Fantastic location - short walk to the light rail and several cute bars/restaurants. There is a paved sidewalk behind the buildling with no car traffic that goes right to the light rail.\r 2. Dog park area - if you are a dog owner, this is a great ammentiy. Dog park is clean and always stocked with clean up bags.\r 3. Apartment - awesome kitchen and living area. Very modern.\r \r Cons:\r 1. NOISE - Since the floors in the kitchen/living areas are laminate wood, we hear EVERYTHING our upstairs neighbor does. Even when they walk it sounds like a thunderous earthquake on our ceiling. Also, the walls are extremely thin. Our neighbor came home the other night at 2am and we heard her cell phone ring from our master bedroom. We are constantly woken up by noise - conversations, blow dryers, etc. Also, the floors in the hallways are concrete - not quiet at all!\r \r Overall, I enjoy living here but the noise factor is a deal breaker. If you enjoy peace and quiet this complex is not for you. more

I moved into Spectrum in May, impressed by the great kitchens, pools, hot tub and BBQ spaces, but my enthusiasm quickly faded as one thing after another began to go wrong. First there were the fire alarms. Loud, incessant alarms that went off in the middle of the night due to both pranks and ""wiring issues."" Standing outside for over an hour at 2:30 in the morning on a work night is cool. The prank alarms were the result of Spectrum welcoming any 22 year-old with his own keg tapper and GED. Luckily, they have worked hard to filter out the crowd that constantly left a mess at the pools and pulled fire alarms, but it's not all roses. You also have to worry about fires due to idiots who leave storage containers on top of the electric stove and actually end up setting their apartment on fire. Fires aside there are the constant maintenance issues. That great TV at the BBQ patio? Never works. The hot tub? Jets aren't a guarantee. Secure parking garage? Half the time the gates get stuck in the up position so that anyone can get in. Leaks in the apartments, power outages, incredibly cheap and ineffective washers and dryers . . . there is always something new and annoying to greet you at Spectrum. I have several of my own stories and any time I mention it to another tenant they will have at least one such story to relate as well. It is a shoddily built building with substandard materials and it shows. If the wear and tear is happening a year into construction what is going to happen after you've lived here for a while? The staff is friendly and they try to be helpful, which is nice and the two younger maintenance guys are always great, though you can tell a little exasperated. At the moment I still have a hole in my wall, a crack in my mirror (here when I moved in), and torn up carpet from it being improperly laid after they tried to fix a leak. On the surface it's pretty and the people are great, but the noise is substantial, quality is poor, and the reality is a far cry from the first impression. more