Activspace

I moved into this building with high hopes and was let down short after. The management at this company is only after money. They do not care about their tenants or the business they are running at the facility. Both onsite and offsite managers do not do anything on a daily to help out with the building, other than asking for your money and telling you when the building is going to be shut down due to new paint. My advise for potential new tenants would be to look elsewhere. There are so many share work spaces in the city to choose from and Activspace could be the worst. This one time they shut down the entire building for 3days to re-​paint and did not offer and one pro-​rated rent. We could not access the building, our computers/​equipment, but we had to pay rent those days? This did not make sense to me, and things like this kept happening. These corrupt crooks need to be ran out of business!

I rented a work space garage unit here for 2 ½ years and loved it. Great location with great fellow small business owners. There is a real sense of community there. The Manager is also very helpful and easy to deal with.

This is getting surreal at this point…
I received a phone call from the management two days ago, asking about my concerns and asking me to consider removing my review on Unilocal.I promised that I would consider it. (No, I haven’t done anything to this point.)
This morning I received an email from the manager of the Ballard ActiveSpace, stating that, «Based on your on-​line comments and those shared with me during our August 20, 2013 conversation, ActivSpace has concluded that you are very unhappy at its property and with its approach, so it is best we part ways.»
They are terminating our rental agreement and giving me 30 days to vacate because they don’t like my Unilocal review or my comments on
.
Here’s a link to my original Unilocal review:
Here’s a link to the article on MyBallard:

DO NOT RENT HERE! The old manager (Jason) was great — the new one doesn’t communicate, is arrogant, and a total @$$#0!3.
Read all the reviews here — the building is built incredibly cheaply, the management sucks, and the owner is apparently also an idiot.
The trash facilities are totally inadequate, the new manager (Richard, the @$$#0!3), is freaky weird about stuff. Besides he’s pushy and stupid.
Have I mentioned DO NOT RENT HERE? It’s also incredibly LOUD.

ActivSpace requires a deposit with an application for rent. At the time you pay the deposit you do not receive a copy of the proposed rental agreement. If your application for rent is accepted, your deposit is nonrefundable.
Once you receive the contract, you find that ActivSpace requires a minimum 6-​month tenancy or you forfeit all or part of your security deposit. However, in the same contract ActivSpace reserves to raise rent with only 14 days notice.
When I pointed this disparity out to the Ballard ActivSpace manager she advised me that the contract terms would not be rewritten but that ActivSpace would not raise my rent within the first 6 months.
In month 5, my rent was raised.
In addition, after you sign the rental agreement, you are presented with a list of rules that include such things as prohibition from using extension cords in your workspace. There is only one outlet in the room. It is impossible to operate power tools in the space without use of extension cords.
The former manager at my location frequently sent out emails to tenants, inventing new rules, such as «you cannot put wood in the dumpster» and «you cannot park overnight on property adjacent to ActivSpace that is, in fact, not owned by ActivSpace.»
In conclusion, the contract terms for ActivSpace are onerous and deceptive, the rules they implement for use of the space are unworkable and the efforts they make to implement new rules to an already onerous set of rules are offensive. I’d avoid ActivSpace if at all possible.

I’m a freelance designer, and I needed a place to work that wasn’t also my home. My needs were simple: 24-​hour access, relatively quiet, sunlight, and affordable. Thank you, Activspace!
Pros:
— 24-​hour access
— Every space has a window
— Right on the Burke Gilman
— Very affordable. I pay $ 160/​month for an 8′ x 8′ office (with 12′ ceilings… I like to joke about how it’s taller than it is wide.)
— Free parking
— Freedom to paint the walls/​hang shelves/​etc…
— Next door to Fred Meyer, where I can get fresh sandwiches and fruit
— Month-​to-​month lease (though you forfeit your deposit if you leave before 6 months)
Cons:
— My office faces the «courtyard», which means my view is nothing more than the offices on the other side, plus a little patch of blue sky.
— Limited to DSL internet, which is inexplicably expensive for those who don’t need separate phone service.
— No parking during peak hours… the only option seems to be to park across Leary, which is a pain to cross. Better to bike.
I’m extremely satisfied with Activspace — I can enjoy coming to work every day. Highly recommended.