Ben Lomond Plaza Apartments

Great place with great views, close to so many parcs, hikes and little shop. Love this place

A friend of mine used to live in this building until this past spring, and after a few visits I formed a fair opinion to allow me to post this review. The building is owned by the Effort Trust realty company, and much like many of their other buildings in Hamilton, 21 Ben Lomond needs major updates and care.

EXTERIOR:
- The building itself is from the 90’s, and from the outside it looks like it hasn’t received a new coat of paint ever since then (very flaky and faded). The building is very high on the Hamilton Mountain, so it takes a beating by the weather elements. It would be great if they would slap a fresh coat of paint on it.
- The pool on the grounds hasn’t been used in years, but at least is kept empty and isn’t full of grungy water like Effort Trust’s other buildings with pools have.
- The upper level visitor parking is a NIGHTMARE because it is loaded full of potholes. I used to tell the Uber’s to drop me on the street and I would walk up to the main entrance, because that upper parking lot will destroy any car. The lower level parking garage may be “secured” (and I use that word loosely since my friends car was broken into once), but the garage is like a scene out of Tales From The Crypt. I was always waiting for a skeleton to jump out at me. It’s dark, dingy, poorly lit, and the roof looks like it’s about to cave in.
- The grounds surrounding the building are neatly kept, and the garbage/recycling were always tidy. I never met the superintendent of the building, but was told they were cool and good at their job.

INTERIOR:
- It’s quite sad to report that the only good thing inside this building, is they reportedly replaced the elevators several years ago. That being said, being such a tall building it only has 2 elevators, and they still don’t run quite as fast as others I’ve been in.
- The entry lobby/waiting area near the elevators is kept under lock & key, so it typically just hosts empty chairs, or sometimes random decor depending on the season. Aside from a small bench inside the front door, there is nowhere to sit and wait for people to come downstairs.
- The hallways and stairs are kept clean and free of debris and clutter.
- The quality of apartments will vary based on the quality of tenants who keep them, but one thing every unit has in common is the old school fuse style boxes in the closets. If you plan to move in and think you can just flick a switch to reset when you blow a fuse, think again. You’ll have to submit a work order to the building’s main office to have the fuse plug replaced in order to get the power back on in whatever room you blew it.
- If you are one for high end internet connectivity beware of this building, because it is still quite prehistoric technology wise. The only two major companies that offer services to 21 Ben Lomond are Rogers and Bell. Also note that both companies only offer services that top out at 100mbps download speed, and 10mbps upload speed. Quite pathetic compared to what these companies offer to other buildings and residences in Hamilton. The downfall is due to the building not being updated by said companies to support the faster Internet options for the residents (as far as I know is not an Effort Trust issue).
- The laundry facilities need an upgrade in this building, because unless you visit a bank to buy coins you cannot do your laundry. Other buildings Effort Trust owns have a payment by card system in place, yet for some reason 21 Ben Lomond does not. That is a big downfall.
- The storage units the building offers tenants smell god awful. Very damp, musty and smells of mildew. They need an urgent makeover. Don’t keep things in storage that you don’t want to have smell later, or possibly be ruined by potential water damage.
- The mail room in the basement needs a security camera installed asap. My friend had their mailbox broken into on more than one occasion, and hence lost packages left for them in the secured Canada Post boxes.

Final thoughts: not a horrible building, but needs major upgrades to support the current hefty rental rates.

Amazing renovated apartments, beautiful view of the escarpment and management is on top of things and responds promptly.

Have lived here for many years, it's clean and safe with awesome superintendents.

Its in a great spot, amazing views.