AC Lofts

Have lived in homes in the suburbs of Buffalo most of my life, but life makes unexpected changes and climbing stair was not good for my back. I wanted something that was convenient to my place of employment and to all activities the downtown area offers. AC Lofts is perfect. The elevator is a blessing and security is tops. We love watching the fireworks and ball drop on New Years. The staff is courteous and accommodating. Rent is affordable and I have a designated parking space.Buffalo is... progressing into the future and AC Lots is proof of that. Lee mas

This is a really nice place to stay if you are a professional from health care or business field. I say this because I am from health care field myself. The building is very quiet. The staff is very friendly and will respond to any issues with the apartment/building promptly. When I was looking for a place to stay, I wanted a place that was both quiet and yet not too far away from lively activities. This was just perfect. Also moving from Canada, I was concerned about security issues in buffalo... . But touch wood this building is very safe especially because it is right next to another building where I see cops working. I have been outside for walks frequently with my baby without any issues. Plus being Canadian Tim Horton is a necessity which is located right across from the building if you need coffee. :) So if you are looking for safety, comfort and a quieter place then move to AC lofts today. Lee mas

I have mixed feelings about AC Lofts. My friends pay the same rent as I do but live in much nicer buildings in Buffalo. Here's a brief summary of my experience at AC Lofts:

DESIGN, FIXTURES AND AMENITIES - 2/5
- The building was recently remodeled (2013, I think), but it looks like a cheap college dorm. There are holes and cracks in the ceilings, which I'm guessing were kept to make the apartments look more like the original warehouse. The windows don't open to allow fresh air in. The toilets... clog and back up often, which is a pain. The bathrooms look extremely cheap in general. There is cheap carpet and linoleum in most units, and many bedrooms don't have closets. (You get a wardrobe or two, if you're lucky.) These are not luxury lofts; the ceilings are high, but that's about it.
-Things break down a lot. The entire building's cooling system broke down earlier in the summer and we were without AC for days. The fire alarm goes off often. This weekend, there was a small fire in the laundry room and, instead of doing an emergency repair, they shut down the entire laundry room for the rest of the day/night. Very inconvenient.
-A little bit of false advertising from the website: There is an awkward "gym" area with a treadmill and an elliptical, not a full gym. The website also claims there's a "retail" space in the building, but there isn't.

MANAGEMENT / COMMUNICATION - 3/5
-The current building manager (Stacy) is very nice, but she is a bit disorganized and does not respond to e-mail promptly. To reach her by phone, you have to call the main office -- no cell number available. The people at the main office can be quite rude (and clueless) at times.

MAINTENANCE - 3/5
-The maintenance guys are really nice. There's always at least one maintenance person in the building during the day, and there is an emergency number for nights and weekends. I called the emergency number once and had to wait almost an hour to hear back, even though it wasn't late at night.

CLEANLINESS - 3/5
-The building itself is quite clean, and the maintenance guys clean a lot. However, many apartment windows are very dirty and covered in spiderwebs and spiders in the summer.

LOCATION - 4/5
-The location is quite central, especially for those working in downtown Buffalo. That being said, the area can be a bit sketchy late at night/on weekends.

Distances:
Community college - across the street
Metro (streetcar) - 2 blocks
Bus station, library - 1 block Lee mas

Beautiful Historic building w/lots of great history! Great location for nightlife, concerts, baseball games and food. Also Quick access to highways. If you don't want to drive you can walk or ride bikes, common area where you can hangout or workout. Importantly the staff is friendly the building is clean.

Fun fact about AC Lofts: it used to be a paper making building. The housing complex's over 100 years of history shows through the high concrete ceilings in the rooms - all laden with happy amounts of pipes and unexplained fixtures that probably served a purpose 60 years ago. I like the age-y feel of my studio. My friend, in a two-bedroom, feels quite off-put by it. He is also very off-put by the strong dormitory vibe.
AC Lofts served as college housing before opening up to a broader public. And... while it has taken great strides to revamp its interior, it has failed - or chosen not - to address the prominent college student vibe. In defense of AC Lofts, a fair share of residents are medical or college students.
As the title suggests, AC Lofts is not in the back of the pack. It has taken efforts to revamp it residences. Many of the rooms are adopting wood floors (my room has wood flooring, my friend's two-bedroom does not). Still, weighing the perks and deficits, I would say AC Lofts stands safely ahead of the pack average - while not bad, there are definitely better places for price.
The Perks I found are:
AC Lofts is close to 33 East and 33 West, which is definitely a plus as I work 25 min North of Buffalo.
It is walking distance from Canal Side and Chippewa (two of the nicer areas in Buffalo, both accomodate daytime and nighttime activities, but CS is where more major events might be held).
It has elevators.
The rooms are refurnished (e.g. clean).
The rec room at least has a treadmill and elliptical, and a ping pong table and complete billiards set.
Gated parking is available - so is partially gated, but for an extra $10 a month, take the fully gated.
The not-so-greats:
Only time Werner is available - and if you didn't know, Time Werner is a bane in Buffalo's existence.
The electric provider is National Grid (I had an anecdote, but deferred to my better judgment).
The management is a ghost. It is clear AC Lofts' staff is more concerned with making sales than retaining tenants. The only time I know I can find them at the complex - or near their office - is if they are giving a tour to prospective residents. When my door's battery died and I was locked out of my room 3am on a Sunday, it took 4 calls over 30min to get a hold of anyone.

For $60 - parking, $35 - furniture rental, and $800 (depending on the unit) - rent, it will be tough to find a better home, but definitely worth an effort. Lee mas