South 16 at the Bridges

Convenience to medical school, layout, and overall building quality (i.e. functional and efficient AC, plumbing) are very nice. Finishes (i.e. cabinetry, flooring) are cheap and poorly fit. Overall, great pick if you want a functional building with decent amenities near the medical school and Carilion. Otherwise, overpriced for what it is. Road is noisy but walls are thick.

I chose this apartment for the proximity and for no other reason. Even if you do have a car. It's really convenient to live right across from the school for the 1st year. Especially since the schedule changes weekly and you realize last minute you're about to accidentally skip class.

But once you start clerkship and hardly ever on campus anymore, there's no point in sticking around.

The price is for a "luxury" apartment, but South16 is anything but a luxury building
The apartments themselves are adequate and livable- but should not be $1500+ for a 1 bedroom in Roanoke.
The apartment appliances are cheap- for example the sink doesn't properly fit into the faucet and many people's dishwashers don't run properly.
Management is pretty poor. I have lived in 3 different apartments (not counting university dorms) and Management at this particular building does a poor job in keeping its residents updated. Elevators have been down, the fob reader was not working (so no one could enter the building with their keys) or once the fire alarm went off 3x in one day- but Management never sent any emails to residents about the events. It was up to students to have a group chat to keep each other informed.

The building has ongoing pest issues that we only knew about because of the student group chat.

The quality of the apartments widely vary- some come with weird smells, floods regularly when it rains outside, or have balconies bent at weird angles. But the rent will stay the same regardless of the state of the apartment.

The apartment building is also inaccessible for lower income medical students. All medical students, because even with loans and finaid they will be considered unemployed with no income as full time students, will need a guarantor who makes 5x the rent (and more as South16 overestimates the salary needed to take utilities into account). I personally had to reach out to my uncle because my immediate family did not satisfy 5x the "rent" limit

The only highlight is that the maintenance is great. Fast, responsive and efficient at their jobs.
The building is largely quiet, but I believe that's cause not a lot of people seem to live in the building. I hardly ever see people around. The walls are very thick and I usually can't hear my neighbors.
If you live on the 5th floor, there's great amounts of sunlight
The number of dog poop bag dispensers around the grounds of the building are really helpful
Amenities like the gym, pool and lounge are nice. But you end up using them way less than you think so the expensive rent again seems unwarranted

The building could be worse, and you can live comfortably in it for the first 2 years. But the rent should be cheaper if management is going to be this shoddy

its not amazing but it's worth being so close to school

The rent is on the pricier side, but nothing beats the location. Living across the street from VTCSOM is extremely convenient. The apartment building is also located very close to downtown and many shops. The maintenance crew is very responsive and this is a big plus.

The commute for Riverside Circle can't be beat - 5 minutes walking from your apartment door to the door of your classroom/office - and there are in-unit washer/dryers, but otherwise this place is overpriced and not as nice as you would expect given the cost.

It was neither designed nor built particularly well, so you can look forward to built-for-tall-people cabinets combined with built-for-short-people showers, key locks rather than digital, lack of built-in storage (e.g. closets, usable cabinets), noise and smells from thin walls, higher energy costs due to poorly sealed windows and poorly insulated walls, and so on.

Maintenance responds promptly, which is good because you'll probably need to call them a few times a month in the beginning. While in-unit issues are taken care of, the maintenance of the overall property is poor - carpet stains in the hallways, trash on the garage floor and around the edges of the garage, large pools of standing water, etc.

No utilities are included in your rent, and there is a hidden trash removal fee. There are also additional fees for pets (monthly), and parking (although only for the parking deck and parking garages - the spots behind the buildings are city owned and free).

Overall, good for first and second year med students who need to come and go from Riverside a lot. Probably not worth it otherwise.

- For medical students the best part of this apartment is that it is so close to school and hospital.

- The facility is well-maintained

-Management is pretty quick with maintenance requests.

-Our apartment had been recently re-finished when we moved in, so everything felt new and up-to date upon our arrival.

-Downsides are that you kind of are overpaying for the amount of square footage that you get. You can definitely find cheaper places with more space in Roanoke, although might not have the same convenience.

-Noise from neighbors can sometimes be an issue. The walls do not provide much noise insulation.

- Air ventilation is not great. Anytime you cook, even with propping open the windows, the air tends to be pretty stagnant and tends to trap smells in the apartment (at least in our unit - this may be different for others).

Location can’t be beat for VTC- A little pricy for roanoke, but decent management, maintenance is quick. Trains are extremely loud, so be ready for that

Pros: convenient location, new buildings, large bathrooms, relatively new, responsive management

Cons: expensive, can be loud, not everyone cleans up after their dogs, amenities not included

It has a really nice gym, is a relatively quiet building, and very close to the essentials (Carilion, Starbucks, brewery). I live with my fiance and a dog. Dr. Pepper Park is a 2 minute walk away to let the dog run around, and the Greenway is a short walk away as well. It is in a great location because it isn't too far from downtown or the major shopping centers, and very close to the school.

I have nothing bad to say about the complex. The people here are warm and welcoming, but the rent is too expensive.