Cabot Crossing

Pros: grounds are kept clean (with the exception of the laundry room), fake but friendly and attentive staff, safe location, lots of community activities if you’re into that sort of thing
Cons: they tend to give your packages (ups) to other residents. This happened to me twice, the first time I was given someone else’s package, the second time someone else was given my package and cabot crossing refused to take responsibility for this and the person did not return my package). Walls are thin, plowing is horrible, and the locks on the doors are not very reassuring-​each time mine broke the person never fixed it right and It still does not work properly.
Also, they aren’t in the office half the time they’re supposed to be open.
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A review that’s been a year in the making. I lived at Cabot Crossing August ’08 through August ’09 and have many opinions on my time there. Some things I really enjoyed, others not so much. On average, I’d give it 2.5 stars, but I’ll round to three. Just know that these three stars mean it’s «ok» with a shrug, not A-​OK with a thumbs up.
Good things:
1. Pretty grounds that are well-​maintained. It’s actually quite pretty here. They take very good care of the premises. There’s a lot of trees, nice flowers, and the grounds are kept very clean. You’d never expect that such a place existed at the end of what is otherwise a pretty ugly street.
2. Tennis court, small fitness center with a couple treadmills, an elliptical, and a universal gym, an outdoor pool, and outdoor jacuzzi for community use (eeeeww!!). The pool was just for recreation, way too small to do laps if that’s your thing.
3. Clubhouse with 24 hr laundry facilities that are way cheaper than going to a laundromat. $ 1.50 for washers and dryers, unless you are lucky and can score one of the machines that for some reason is cheaper.
4. There’s a nice tv lounge and kitchen area in the clubhouse where you can relax while your laundry is going if you don’t feel like going back to your apartment. Very handy in those winter months.
5. Good proximity to the highway (Lowell Connector/​Rte 3/​I-​495) for commuters. And for you shoppers out there, it’s pretty equidistant to the Burlington and Pheasant Lane malls.
6. At least during my time here, heat and hot water were included in the rent. I will say, though, that the rent isn’t cheap for Lowell – my 516 sq ft one bedroom was $ 910/​mo – but with heat/​hot water and the aforementioned amentities included it’s not a bad deal.
7. First and second floor units have patios or balconies with an outdoor storage closet. Insider tip – if you move here, see if you can get a corner unit. The way the buildings are designed, my neighbors’ storage closet was waaaaay bigger than mine.
8. Walk-​in closet in the bedroom, which is great, but without a ton of extra storage elsewhere in the apartment, it fills up quickly.

Bad things:
1. Not really walkable to anything except a couple pizza places and a liquor store and even those you’ll be tempted to drive to. It may be obvious to most, but just to emphasize, you will absolutely need a car if you live here. Lowell’s public transportation system BLOWS. If you work in Boston, your transit options are to take a LRTA bus to the commuter rail station, or drive to the Lowell or North Billerica commuter rail station and park for the day.
2. Lots of children live here. If you are annoyed by kids, this may not be the best place for you to live. I mean, I don’t mind them during the daytime playing outside, running around and screaming and whatnot, but at 10:30 at night, some people think it’s appropriate for their kids to run up and down the halls.
3. If you’re looking for a place with a sense of community, look elsewhere. I didn’t meet too many friendly outgoing people while living here. I’m not saying they’re bad people, but I always try to smile and greet people as I pass by them, see them in the laundry room, etc., but very few people actually respond. They just look at me like I have five heads.
4. A couple of random sketch events have occurred, but some might argue that’s par for the course if you live in Lowell. Here’s a few examples. One night there was some kind of fight in the hallway outside my door at 4:30 am. Another night, I was awoken by some very loud sex coming from the next building. How hard is it to shut your windows, right? On many occasions, I have come home late and parked my car to see people just randomly sitting in their cars with the engine and lights off – what’s that all about? SHADY!
5. The website promised a dishwasher. There was no such dishwasher. I actually went back through the literature they gave me when I expressed interest in these apartments and it seems that the two bedroom units have dishwashers. Guess I should have read it closer.
6. If you like to cook, you’ll hate this kitchen. Not enough cabinets or counter space. The stove is electric – not necessarily a negative, but some people are very adamant about preference of a gas stove. The stove is also one of those slightly smaller «apartment-​sized» stoves, so I wouldn’t try to cram your Thanksgiving turkey into it.
7. I know I said laundry on the premises was a good thing, but it’d be even better if it was in my building and not in the clubhouse. I’m not lazy, but I did not enjoy trekking out in the cold to go do my laundry this past winter.