N0treDom

Thanks TomOpus for mentioning the AMC Mainstreet Theater. Went there this past weekend to watch The A-Team and had a great time. I had the chocolate milkshake and the powdered donuts and my friend had the crepes. Very delicious. Really enjoyed the comfy leather seats which turned into massage chairs due to the explosions/gunfire from the movie. A great experience all around.

HistoryProf

still completely at a loss with apartment hunting...it's such a hard thing to gauge on-line...as soon as I find a place that seems nice, is affordable and perfectly located, i find a hundred reviews on those apartment sites saying DO NOT MOVE HERE IT SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! over and over again. I realize that people generally will only seek out a site like that to post something negative, but it's frustrating. it seems like every single complex in the Lenexa area is shit according to the internet. I'm suspecting it has more to do with the people than the places.

I did notice that there are a trio of theaters run by a group called Fine Arts Theaters or something that are all within a couple of miles of where i'm targeting...the Rio, Glensomething Arts, and Laewood or something like that. Looks to have a nice selection of stuff coming up, so i'm very happy to know that is nearby....really my biggest social need since i'll be flying solo for a while and need to get out of the apt. once in a while anyway

Bluelitespecial

There are plenty of new apartment complexs along Renner Rd in Lenexa. Those theatres are the Glenwood Arts 95th and Metcalf, behind the Sears store in Metcalf South Mall, The Rio is a single theatre arthouse in Old Town Overland Park, and the Leawood or RanchMart Theatres are along 95th street close to state line Rd.

calhoun07

I've lived at my apartment complex for 13 years. It's not the best, but for a two bedroom and the price I pay it can't be beat. I can still pay off my car and bills and still have a little extra to put away. So I stay... But where I live is ranked pretty low on these apartment sites. I've read through some of the reviews...and I think I recognize some of them...I know who wrote some of them. Just about all of them were people who were evicted for one reason or another so they write in retaliation.

Apartment living, as a whole, is going to suck for one reason or another. But I've looked up just about every apartment complex online (within a certain dollar range) in the Kansas City area and just about all of them get some pretty negative reviews. I haven't found one that gets high rankings across the board.

If you're leery of apartment hunting, why not just rent a nice town home or duplex in a nice quiet neighborhood somewhere. I know somebody who recently moved out of a three bedroom unit here who found a great town home in a better area with more space and their own garage for only $20.00 more than they were paying here. I think next time I move that's what I am going for.

NotThatGuy

It looks pretty freakin' cool.

I second the AMC Main Street Theatre...great place to watch a movie. They have a decent bar there too. I think there is a coffee bar upstairs, though I have not been.

HistoryProf

The main issue is $ right now....and I just want to be close to the archives. Because we will still be paying our Mortgage for the foreseeable future I just need a cheap as I can get and still not suck place. a studio is even fine really. It's just hard to know about areas from a distance without having lived there. There are quite a few on that renner road but they all have terrible reviews on those sites? I realize most are disgruntled former renters....people who make the problems they complain about. But is it generally a safe area? All i'm really going to be doing through the winter is eating, working, sleeping, reading, writing and seeing a movie now and then. I just want to avoid any place that will be dominated by students and hopefully more family oriented - as that tends to give better odds in the noise dept.

I'm about as easy going as it gets though, so as long as it isn't an all night party i'm fine. I was just shocked to see all the reviews railing against the places I was looking at on renner rd. Maybe I should post them and see what you guys can tell me about the area?

HistoryProf

is that downtown? would certainly love to see something there by the sound of it. might be a good spot to go see inception. wanna be my date peddy?

NotThatGuy

It is in the middle of downtown...I think 15th and Main St? Something like that. Inception would be COOOOL there. Awesome sound system in that theatre. When do you get into town?

HistoryProf

okay...here's the place I had at the top of the list for location/price/website pics:

#1: Wind River Lodge, 9250 Lichtenauer Drive Lenexa, KS 66219-2101

And then I find these reviews: http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&rl...ed=0CBMQnwIwAA

My only concern there are people saying the walls are "paper thin" - that would suck. but it's cheap and is parallel to Renner rd. on the other side of the hwy.


#2. Ridgeview Apartments 1890 North Lennox Street, Olathe, KS 66061-5193 This is a couple miles south at 119th and Ridgeview just west of I35...an easy commute. also very cheap, but the reviews are terrible. Most alarming is: "move here if you want to get robbed, or jumped, or possibly shot. You would never think Johnson County/Olathe would have a "Ghetto". But this is it."

#3: Dunes at City Center, 8640 Schweiger Ct. Lenexa, KS 66219 - Another one parallel to Renner at 87th and I435...two miles from work. Reviews are not good, but it sounds like it was the management and that has changed. It was called "Point West Apartments" previously.

#4: Indian Meadows Apartments, 12230 S Strang Line Court, Olathe, KS 66062 - this one is in North Olathe @ 119th and I35...but there are NO reviews of this one, so no idea what the area is like.

#5: Oaks at Mill Creek, 8714 Pflumm Court
Lenexa, KS 66215. 87th and Pflumm between the V of 435 and 35. Reviews not good - lots of racist comments about it being "Little Havana"


Those give you an idea anyway....if anyone can offer ANY kind of feedback I would greatly appreciate it. I'm going to start calling around tomorrow and Thurs and am going to have to pick something. it's down to the 11th hour and i'm just going to have to take a shot with one of them.

HistoryProf

Oh, this was another one that is a bit older but very cheap:

Charter House Apartments, 12445 West 97th Terrace, LENEXA, KS 66215 (next to "Orchard Corners SHopping Center" off of I35). Reviews are not good, but it's hard to take seriously when they read like this:

HistoryProf

I start work on the 12th...so in about 9 days! eesh. so much to do

NotThatGuy

Drop me a line when you get into town and we'll grab a beer and I'll introduce you to some good BBQ.

HistoryProf

sounds good man.

Creek Rat

I'm very familiar with those areas of Olathe not not so much for the apartments listed for Lenexa/Overland Park.

Definitely avoid #2 in Olathe for the reasons given.

#4 in Olathe would be fine, just realize that the area around 119th, Blackbob to I-35 has some an incredible amount of traffic going through there, probably the most congestion I've ever seen on that short a stretch of road.

Don't forget to look at some of the new developments along K7 north and west of Olathe and along 435 west of Overland Park. It may be a few miles from #4 but you'll make it up in much less traffic.

HistoryProf

can you be a bit more specific here? any particular cross streets to look for? to avoid?

I take it Lennox Ave is a no go then?

LurkerDan

brizz, any chance of going there and getting a motel for a couple of days and checking the places out in person? why do you need to rent sight unseen?

HistoryProf

Time is just really tight, and I am renting a truck with my stuff and driving down alone. I've got a moving company that's going to send a couple of dudes over to unload it for me...but I don't want to spend hundreds more to keep the truck in a hotel parking lot and go look at apartments that will all look fine in the units they show potential renters....but I can't ever really know neighborhoods and stuff.

I did it when I moved to Tempe for grad school...but that was a bit more simple I guess. just got a place in a complex that had good reviews that was near campus...so just trying to do the same thing again. Ideally, of course, i'd go down ahead of time and scope everything out, but I just don't have that luxury....add in the fact that it's temporary and I just want to be sure I won't be miserable. because that would suck.

LurkerDan

eh, being miserable isn't that bad.

Nazgul

That all depends on where you plan to take him.

As for apts., my S-I-L lived in the ones off of Woodland and 101st, just north of K-10, and just west of where you'd be working. They were new and next to a Golf Course (Falcon Valley, I think).

Found it:

http://www.dunesatfalconvalley.com/

Creek Rat

It's exactly the place I was thinking of when I mentioned K-10. It always looked nice, I think it's only a couple years old.


Sorry brizz, i can't be much more specific on recommendations. I used to live in Olathe but now live in a little college town about 90 miles south. Go Gorilla's!

That sucks having to pick a new home sight unseen but don't wait too long to contact a leasing manager. The last thing you want to do is get down to the wire only to find out they are lazy in processing your lease with credit check/references or what not.

HistoryProf

well I think I found a place today...won't name it till i'm sure - probably not even then so bando doesn't fly down and surprise me some night.

but it has 100% rating on the apartment reviews site, the only one I've seen with that, and looks nice, talked to the lady today and she was really happy about my profile as an older, professional guy looking for a 1BR to eat, sleep, read, and write in. I didn't tell her about the blu ray player though

but they had ONE unit that the people just moved out of this week, so it was perfect timing and i'm the first to call on it. it's smaller and next to a park which is nice. we'll see. hopefully by tomorrow night this is all taken care of.

TomOpus

Considering the upcoming holiday and another plus for Kansas City is fireworks are still legal. Gonna buy some for the first time in probably 20 years.

Vibiana

Damn! I'm at my dad's in Upper Michigan this week, returning home on Sunday, will have to check out the rest of this thread then. Am mooching computer time at my brother's.

HistoryProf

funny....where in Michigan? I'm heading from Michigan to KC on thursday....got the place in a small complex near the OP/Lenexa border...near 103rd and Quivira(?)....very happy with the location.

calhoun07

Coventry Oaks?