City Watch Apartments

I have lived at City Watch nearly 3 years now and am extremely happy here. I love the proximity to the Junction, shopping and transportation, so it’s incredibly convenient. But more important, I love the building and my home here. Piia and Kevin in the office are absolutely a delight to deal with. They respond quickly to emails or phone calls and I don’t think I’ve ever had a maintenance request that wasn’t handled same day unless they had to order something. They know my name when they see me in the hallway and are always pleasant and helpful. The maintenance guys are exceptionally helpful, friendly, and they know to not let my cat loose in the hallway when they come in without my telling them.
One of the reasons I ended up renting here was that I had a regular appointment with a practitioner in their lobby medical suites, and every time I was there I remarked how the building looked so clean and well cared for, and the people coming and going from the resident elevators looked like decent, professional people. So it looked like a place I’d like to live, and I was definitely right.
I have one of the smaller apartments — 637 sq. feet — but it’s the perfect size for one person, especially with a walk-​in closet. (Not all units have walk-​ins, but mine does.) I enjoy having a washer/​dryer right in my unit, and the convenience of the garbage/​recycling chutes right on my floor. When packages are delivered, the office staff brings it upstairs and places it in front of your door — so convenient and appreciated! There is also a lovely rooftop deck with tables and umbrellas and lounge chairs and BBQ grills. It’s never particularly crowded, which is nice.
Because the first floor is offices, the residential elevators are locked and you need a key or to be buzzed in. I do find this confuses first time visitors who visit me, especially as the location of the elevators are not obvious when you walk in, nor the fact that there are 2 towers, so you need to know which elevator you’re headed to, and not accidentally taking the garage elevator. This also requires people to be buzzed in twice after hours, first at the main door, and then at the elevator door. I do have to fetch people who are lost, especially delivery people. But if that’s the worst thing about living there, it’s not bad.
The neighborhood is noisy, but that’s to be expected living so close to Alaska Junction. It seems exacerbated by the fact that my apartment faces 41^st, which is where the Safeway is. So you do get a lot of early morning truck noise from deliveries. Coming from New York City originally, the noise doesn’t phase me. But there does seem to be a lot of turnover in the building, and I wonder if that contributes to it. There do not seem to be a lot of children in the building — probably also a function of the busy neighborhood — but you’ll definitely be sharing elevators with dogs from time to time.
I do have a deck, but being on the top floor, I do not use it very often as it doesn’t have a roof/​cover. All the other decks have a «roof» in the deck above them. But being on the top floor, I don’t have that. So there’s no cover from sun or rain. So I never use it.
I’m very happy here and hope to live here for a while. Rents in the neighborhood are rising significantly, so I’m not sure what the current lease renewals will look like. Keeping fingers crossed that I don’t get priced out. I’ve lived in a lot of crappy places with poor management over the years, and this has been a breath of fresh air to not be living in that situation for once. I’m definitely loving my time at City Watch.

As my year with City Watch draws to a close, I can’t help but feel wistful. Ironically, I was on my way to City Views when I first stopped into their leasing office by mistake. After a one year nightmare on Bradford Street, I am kicking myself again and again that I didn’t ask Piia to tell me what she had available that fateful day. Read my review of City Views for the compete story. It is a terrible shame that Unilocal hides many of the reviews for this wonderful complex due to the New Review syndrome. Read them and believe.
City Watch is a vanishing breed in West Seattle, where quick-​baked, over-​priced cookie cutter apartment traps continue to spread like a man-​made virus throughout 98 116 and 98 126. They have 18 floor plans and two 5 story towers right above a commercial space mostly leased by Swedish at the time of writing this. Piia remembered me from the Day I Went Insane and rented from Bradford Street. Smart, sweet and professional to the core, she quickly found me a very nice 1 bedroom 751 sf unit on a third floor.
The terrific aspects of life at City Watch spans quite a list. My balcony overlooked 41^st Ave which has some neighborhood traffic but is tree lined, green and idyllic for city living. My unit came with new carpet that was easy to keep clean, for a typical monthly fee they are pet friendly, consistent matching counter tops and cabinet /​plumbing hardware throughout, no popcorn ceiling, recessed kitchen lights, matching black frig, stove, micro and dishwasher. My laundry room was enclosed with its own door and the trash /​recycling rooms on each floor make disposal easy and convenient. Considering the many gray days each year in Seattle, their units are surprisingly well-​lit and there are no less than two grocery stores within walking distance. Gated parking beneath the building is cheaper than the public parking building across the street, but is high enough to keep tenants parking in the ever shrinking number of street spots that I figure will be extinct once Whole Foods opens up next door.
Make sure the floor plan you select has enough storage for all your things. That was the one short-​sighted mistake I made. The office team of Piia and Kevin, always courteous, respond quickly to email and are consistently on site during business hours to assist you. Garrett and David attend to maintenance needs quickly and professionally as well. They continued to tend my ailing toilet during my stay, removed something I didn’t know I should have removed from my dishwasher (brand new), even replaced my water heater and keep the grounds super clean. The price point here is high as befits West Seattle, but considering the quality of the construction, the quality of the apartments and the outstanding staff, City Watch is still more affordable than the newer slicker and more cheaply built buildings that continue to surround them and great value. Check here first!

We lived in this building over two years and loved it! The only complaint we had was the lack of sunlight because we lived in an interior apartment.
The noise in the area is caused by the numerous complexes being built around the area. Once they are finished, it is a fairly quiet place to live.
The apartment is conveniently located near 3 excellent grocery stores and numerous restaurants. It is centrally located and 15 minutes from everything in Seattle. It takes approximately 7 minutes to get to the Seahawks (Century Link) stadium.
One of the greatest things about the complex is the management team. They were all very professional and actually cared about their tenants. To go above and beyond their duties, they would personally drop off any oversized package at our door instead of forcing us to pick them up from the office. We even became friends with Gharret (custodian?), possibly one of the friendliest people on earth.
I would recommend this place to anyone interested in moving to West Seattle.

Quite simply, one of the best places I’ve ever lived.
The building itself is a bit odd — it shares space with a host of doctors’ offices and commercial spaces — but the location is outstanding. There are literally three grocery stores across the street, and the junction is two blocks away. For those commuting to downtown, the Rapidride comes by every 15 minutes, and every 7 during the morning — I work downtown, don’t own a car, and haven’t missed it for a second. Some apartments have an outstanding, though increasingly limited view, as buildings go up around the area and block the view of downtown. Many apartments still have views of the Cascades, however, which is pretty outstanding. The result: this is an increasingly desired location, so there will likely be a host of competitors in the coming weeks and months.
And this is where Citywatch really sets itself apart. The staff they have working here are, bar none, some of the best you could ask for. If you’ve ever had a bad experience with a landlord, living here is really like a breath of fresh air. You know how when you go into an apartment building owned by a large, faceless corporation, and you go in expecting for them to try and f*ck you every chance they get? It’s the complete opposite here. Piia and her team really are committed to giving you a quality experience, and I personally have appreciated it, especially considering some of the past places I’ve lived. Some places go into every interaction with their residents looking to get as much money as they can out of them — this place looks to try and do what they can to make you happy. What a novel freakin’ idea, right?
There are a couple of drawbacks to this place — it doesn’t feature as many amenities as other places, and the appliances, while nice and functional, aren’t that sleek, stainless steel/​black finish that every cookie-​cutter new place being built in Seattle seems to have. Which I, admittedly, kind of like. However, this is certainly outweighed by the fact that I don’t feel dirty writing my rent check every month. Having good people as your landlord is worth its weight in gold. Highly recommended.

I was in a hurry to move about a year ago — and was put at ease the minute I walked into the management office at City Watch. After reading several apartment reviews for various other places saying the management was terrible and non-​responsive, that made me nervous to pick an apartment. But the apartment manager at City Watch, Piia, was amazing from the first introduction.
The apartments are nice — nothing high end but a great space for the money. The location is also perfect, as it is close to shops, grocery stores and the bus lines. It is quiet and the neighbors are friendly. Non-​smoking building too!
Piia responds to all my questions and requests immediately. She really cares about the tenants and is always just an e-​mail away! This just puts my mind at ease knowing she is on top of everything.
Thanks City Watch for making my transition so easy!

I am relocating to Seattle from the EC, didn’t want to live right downtown where I work. West Seattle is super close on the Rapid Transit bus line. So happy I found Citywatch Apts on 41^st Ave! Right at the Alaska Junction, everything is so close and convenient!
The management company/​manager has been very responsive to all my questions and requests. She has a great sense of urgency, and is always just an email away! The apt is nice, not high end finishes, but a great space for the money. And location, location, location! I moved in, in Sept and am loving it!
Thanks Citywatch for making my transition so easy!