Park Place Condominium

Well, I’m moving out of Park Place after living here for 3 years. It has its pros and cons, like I was told by a neighbor when I originally looked into moving here.
Pros: Close to Fort Ward park. Close to 395, which makes it great for getting into DC, Maryland, and beyond. No need to do much snow removal, as facility does most of that for you. Parking is generally easy as there’s always a space unless it’s really late at night.
Cons: My particular unit is right next to a condemned unit so I may have more cockroaches than anyone else, but I have a TON. I see 2 – 3 a day, sometimes 4 or 5 in the kitchen and living room. Gross. I’ve also had a few spiders here and there. So much so, my girlfriend refuses to even set foot in the building anymore.
Neighbors are super-​friendly, but hardly anyone picks up their dog poop! It’s quite gross. Part of the problem, too, is there’s no staff to watch the side entrances, so I constantly feel like I’m playing hopscotch over dog excrement just to get inside! The interior lobby is nice, but it’s just enough to mask what’s really lacking with this building, as the hallways need updating, carpeting in the halls are pretty gross, and the laundry units have tons of bugs too. It is nice, however, that the laundry units are open 24/​7, the machines are consistently working, and they have two on the same floor. Mine is just two doors down from my unit.
The immediate neighbors to me across the hall, one is really easy to get along with but the other couple have really annoying dogs that cause a barking storm every time they go outside — and they smoke, so the halls always smell of pot around them. Also gross.
There is a convenient store, which is great, but doesn’t offer a whole lot. This place would be a lot better if there was a Metro shuttle, they could use some of the proceeds from that to help with the costs. There’s always some sort of maintenance going on around here.
Walls are pretty good at keeping outside noises out, and like I said the neighbors are nice, but there’s no real sense of community here, everyone just seems fed up with the lack of structure and of the rules that are here, they make no sense. Also, the party room is available for a fee — but has no pool table or anything you can really do in there, so it’s pretty pointless. The gym, too, is nice, but I stopped going because the one where I work is better — there’s no TV in the gym room, and it’s set way back out of reach of the general building areas. It’s also got bugs and the air is bad down there.
The park itself is the saving grace here. I’ve really enjoyed taking my dog to Fort Ward and have appreciated how close it is!
The building, though… I’ve started to call it Dark Place. I can’t wait to move out.

Glad to do a first review of Park Place.
I have lived at Park Place for a year and I’m sad to move but I need to get closer to a metro. I think Park Place is a great place to live. Since these are condos, every unit will be different: mine is very nice and well-​kept with an awesome updated kitchen.
I live on the 11^th floor on the Van Dorn Street side and the view of Fort Ward Park is absolutely gorgeous. I’ve seen maybe 3 bugs since I’ve lived here (two right when I first moved in.) There’s security at night when the management office is closed as well as a front desk staff. My neighbors are super friendly — I know some by name. When I moved in, a woman overheard my friends and I lamenting that we hadn’t rented a dolly, and she lent us hers. Seriously nice people! I use the laundry room (there are TWO on each floor) and I hardly ever have to compete with people to use them. I can do laundry pretty much whenever I want. It’s a very pet-​friendly place, which I like. Ooh also trash chutes on every floor, which I feel like you never appreciate until you have them. Now I’m spoiled!
They have a gym that is decent: two ellipticals, treadmills and bikes plus a pretty impressive assortment of weight machines. I use it frequently in the mornings and have never had to wait for an elliptical. After work is a little more crowded, but mostly weight-​lifters. Full disclosure: the gym is in the basement with no windows and quite a long walk to the elevators. I admit, it reminds me of the hospital scene in the first episode of The Walking Dead and I always check behind me because it’s a little creepy. But I’ve never encountered a zombie, so I think you’re good. ;) There’s also a pool which I’ve never used, but I see quite a few families going to the pool during these sweltering summer months.
Fort Ward Park also has a trail if you want to work out outside. It is a seriously nice park and dog friendly.
My only con: not close to a metro, which my boyfriend will need when we move in together. But RIGHT off exit 5 on 395, which makes for very short drives when you’re travelling outside of rush hour.
I highly recommend Park Place: it is a very nice place to live!