Champlain Towers Homestead

I moved into Champlain Towers less than two months ago and would like you to know how happy I am. I’ve never lived in an apartment building, so this is a new experience. My apartment is lovely, with a big balcony and a view facing the tree-lined Rideau Terrace. I was surprised at how spacious it is with lots of closet space, a freshly polished parquet floor and an up-to-date stainless-steel fridge, stove and microwave. And there is a surprisingly large indoor pool, great for doing laps.

I’ve been treated well from Day 1, by some nice, friendly on-site management and staff. They made certain that my apartment was spotless for move in and are always friendly and happy to answer any of my questions. This makes a big difference in a new environment.

This is a nice quiet building, mostly because there are a lot of older people, but there are a quite a few younger folks and families. There are several parks with walking and biking trails just down the hill by the river. We’re also close to Beechwood Ave and near to the St. Patrick St. bridge, convenient for a walk downtown. I am glad that I chose to live at 200 Rideau Terrace.

I lived here for one year and am moving because I'd like to relocate downtown. This building is beautiful and well-kept. The Pros: clean, huge clean laundry room with a lot of machines, 3 elevators (one doesn't work about once a month), a/c (sort of) at no extra cost, clean & large indoor pool, large party room, my bachelor is large with a lot of storage, very large balconies, bright, close access to #6 bus that goes to the Market and all the way up Bank street, nice view of Gatineau Hills on North Side, cityscape on the South side, community atmosphere mostly for older tenants, rent very reasonable for what you get. The Cons: management is annoying - it's a large building with a lot of tenants so they're always posting "do" and "don't" signs everywhere and asking you to complete questionnaires, much of which are none of their business; LOTS of dogs in the building is a con if you don't like being in the elevator with them every day (I love it, not a con for me), you go through a 3rd party to get and pay for your electricity bill. It's a nice place to live.

Older building (circa 1966) with larger than usual apartments, by current standards. Staff are few but cleanliness of the building is first and foremost. The garage car entrance, is steep and a chore for standard transmissions unless you have lots of practice. The swimming pool is clean and indoors. A bonus for those that enjoy it. But it is not extensively used and some days, you might be the only one there. A frightening thought, should you have a medical emergency while alone. A camera should be installed, and monitored when it is open, to perhaps prevent an accidental drowning.