I was offered a job and found out I was moving to Birmingham in November of last year. The problem was, I knew nothing of the "Magic City" or its neighborhoods. But on the same day I received the offer for the new job, I realized I needed to find a place, and fast. So I downloaded an apartment app and started searching. I had decided on one criteria. I wanted to walk to work. That should be easy, I thought, there are a tone of loft apartments downtown. The problem is that the large majority of them were black boxes. To this day. I don't know how one would go about taking a look at and discovering availability on these lofts. Without being overly conspiratorial, I will say that to this day I have doubts about the ethics, motives and business practices of so many of these downtown apartments. I still don't know how to crack those black boxes. There was one huge exception. There was a company that managed a couple of downtown lofts that were located less than a five minute walk from my workplace. When I called them and left a message, they called me back in less than 5 minutes. So that same day, I arranged to meet with their guy, Andrew, who would show me some two-bedroom lofts available at both Goodall-Brown and Fix Play. I immediately fell in love with the 3rd floor loft that would become my home for the next year. I loved the rooftop lounge and the apartment's Modern Amenities with exposed brick, 14 ft ceilings with exposed pipes and ducts and beautiful original hardwood floors, as well as my favorite feature, "the stairs to nowhere", which became my meditation space, is all I needed to remind me I was not living in an apartment "complex". I was home.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fact that as someone with a less-than-perfect credit score, Goodall-Brown lofts management company, SPM, was great to work with to get my contract through and approved, as they provide options that most companies do not. They also offered me free rent for the remainder of the month, which I totally took advantage of. In a few weeks I was moved
Although I am not a dog owner, I have really enjoyed getting to know my neighbors and their furry friends. They both, the neighbors and their pets, were amicable and friendly as we constantly ran into each other in the elevator.
I also think the Goodall Brown Lofts are in the absolutely best location to make the most of downtown living in Birmingham. Within 1 block you can walk to El Barrio, Bamboo, Atomic Lounge and Collins bar. Heck, the Wine Loft is in the SAME BUILDING. Within 4 blocks you can add more than a dozen other fantastic bars and restaurants, like Queens Park, Paramount, East West, The Florentine, John's City Diner, The Essential, Pilcrow, Cayo Coco. I have drank or dines at every one of these places and have yet to be disappointed.
In regards to the management company, I'll never forget that time a few months that I accidentally dropped my keys down the door crack of the elevator shaft. (Don't ask, but I could hear them banging all the way down to the first floor) Sheepishly I put in a maintenance request on the website and then followed up with a phone call the next day. Only a day later, Paris, the delightful general manager for SPM, who is a busy lady responsible for a handful of properties, knocked on my door, my keys in hand. She had had to call the elevator company to retrieve them. I asked her how much I owed her for that service. She waved my question away. "It's fine", she said. Needless to say, they are a responsive company when it comes to service calls
I decided in October that I wanted a bigger place and preferably a house. So I found the perfect place and have moved out of Goodall-Brown as of early December. I know that it was the right decision for me, but that doesn't change the fact that I miss my beautiful loft and the fun of downtown living.