Meridian at Gallery Place

I do not live here, however I visited here yesterday while apartment shopping, and I was appalled at the state of the apartments they showed me. On top of it, although I’ll give her some credit because she was brand new, the leasing agent they had show me around couldn’t answer half my questions, and I had to direct her down the right hallways. If you want someone to rent, they should be able to ask simple questions such as «is this a smoke free community?» and «what are the move-​in fees?» She wasn’t ready to be sent out on her own, and although I will not be renting due to the issues I identify below, I almost stopped the appointment before getting into the first apartment because the leasing agent turned me off with her lack of knowledge.
Additionally the price was as high, if not higher, than many other places in the same neighborhood with more top-​of-​the-​line finishes that were also cleaner, brighter, and without broken aspects to the apartment.
Anyways, the issues I saw across the four apartments (1 bedrooms and studios) I saw:
(1) Multiple apartments I was showed had bathrooms with broken cabinets; and a few kitchens had the same issue (s).
(2) Multiple apartments had not-​functioning garbage disposals
(3) There were paint chips and marks all over the place in every apartment
(4) The formica countertops were not in good shape in a lot of the apartments
(5) In multiple places I saw paint peeling on the ceilings in the hallways
(6) The carpet looked dingy and not clean in the apartments
The problems wouldn’t have been so bad if I had been informed (1) that these apartments weren’t yet ready for rent and that they were being fixed or (2) the leasing agent had noticed them herself and I didn’t have to point out all the issues I saw — which were pretty blatantly obvious. It concerned me that the maintenance/​leasing folk didn’t already know about these issues and were showing the apartments without caveating that they weren’t ready to rent and/​or just showing them at all with these issues. Completely unimpressed and will definitely NOT be renting here.

I love living here! The staff at the concierge desk are my favorite thing about this building – they are welcoming and always helpful. The apartments themselves vary in layouts – I live in a spacious 2 BR 1 sunroom, which is great, and has a washer/​dryer. The gym downstairs is a huge perk, along with the accessibility to the Gallery Place Metro a few blocks away. There is no shortage of good food and happy hour spots nearby. The building is all 20-​somethings, which makes it a nice place to live as a young professional. Overall, extremely impressed with my time living in this building and the staff here.

DON’T RENT HERE IF YOU’RE A REAL ADULT:
I rented at the Meridian sight unseen due to a mix up in a job transfer two years ago. My experience has overall been positive. The staff is fantastic. Any time I’ve had a maintenance issue or leasing question, they’ve been fast to respond and totally professional. The front desk concierge staff is PHENOMENAL. Always pleasant to see and absolutely fantastic. Thumbs up to John and Mr. G (I think that’s his name). I still miss Davis. The night guys are nice too. You also cannot beat the location.
The apartments are spacious, but on the downside, these are not luxury apartments. The kitchens all have formica, the appliances are almost the cheapest you can get. The cabinetry is cheap and so are the tub and bathroom fixtures. The pool is very nice, but there are A LOT of young Dad-​Bod-​Bros hanging out and partying there in the summer. Not very relaxing.
The other HUGE negative is that the leasing office allows WAY TOO MANY people to live in an apartment. They allow 20-​somethings to use the sunroom/​dining room as a bedroom. They even allow three or more adults per one-​bedroom unit. Although the sound proofing on the walls is excellent, I had an obnoxious neighbor for several months who liked to blast his subwoofer against my bedroom wall at all hours of the night. The young and voluminous tenants make it a very loud building and slightly embarrassing to bring age-​appropriate (over 30) friends and dates to. It feels like a frat/​sorority party on weekends. So I wouldn’t recommend living here if you’re over, say 35, or want to live in a building that feels like you’ve moved on from college.
They do, however, now allow dogs, but their pet fees are astronomical.

I love this place. I have been here for 6 months now without complaint. Very friendly staff, quick response to maintenance requests, package delivery to the door, secure etc. I have never been harassed by the management or tacked with some hidden fee or whatever.
My only complaint (now that I think of it) is that the fobs don’t work on ²⁄₄ elevators for some peoples’ fobs. It’s not a huge enough issue to bring my rating down but I do hope they can fix it sometime soon.

I’ve been living at the Meridian for the last four years.
The pros:
— Best deal for the location and amenities you’re going to find. I live in a 1BR with Den and Sunroom (roommates in the den and sunroom) and the rent is quite competitive with this setup. You won’t find better in the Chinatown area.
— Parking at $ 195/​month is slightly cheaper than some nearby buildings — that said, it’s probably tougher to park if you have a larger car. The spots are tight but you get used to it.
— The common areas are clean and nice to show.
— Rooftop pool, and you can bring guests on weekends now.
— They did a great job with soundproofing — I never hear my neighbors. I assume they can’t hear me — we’ve had loud events in my apartment, and no one seems to mind!
The cons:
— We have received rent increase letters every year but often times the Meridian is offering the same model as ours for a much lower price to new tenants. Really doesn’t indicate the building is treating is existing tenants well.
— It’s pretty common on a Friday or Saturday night for there to be a beer can in the elevator. If this bothers you, this isn’t the building for you. If not, rock on.

I am baffled by those who left a negative review. It seems they were generally left by those who had issues while paying their rent, or were made to stay here by a corporate office and had to deal with messes left by previous short-​term tenants, or were written by people a long time ago, because their experiences aren’t representative of mine or anyone I know who lives here. I honestly don’t know what the issues are. I’m a professional with a Ph.D. and I’ve lived in three different complexes since moving to DC six years ago and this is by far the best one. This is a building with a lot of young people who know how to work hard and play hard. On weekends, I saw some people having parties occasionally as I walked by in the early evening, but inside my apartment, I never heard one peep out of anyone. I guess that’s how soundproof the walls are, because in every other apartment complex I have lived in, I could even hear people walking and sometimes watching TV. It is a beautiful building with great amenities. There are always people cleaning the hallways and foyer and they are kept immaculate, along with all the common areas. All of the people, including the tenants, are very friendly. There is even package service – when you get a package, the concierge will bring it up and put it right inside your door for you. There is a convenience store and a dry cleaners right in the building. Now come on! How can you ask for more? We had to call maintenance twice, and both times they resolved our problems within 24 hours. I also had a parking pass and was able to park on any floor pretty much wherever I wanted to. About half the garage was empty all the time! When you add in the great location, I am within six blocks of all five metro lines, and can get to a high-​quality grocery store in five minutes. This is what apartment living should be.

I’m confused as to why people gave this building a bad rating. It’s a beautiful building, everyone is friendly, it’s convenient to everything (metro lines, restaurants, bars, downtown…), and there is so much space in the rooms compared to other luxury buildings in the area. W-​D and dishwasher in every apartment, workout room, 3 decks with grills, a pool, etc. I’ve never had any issues with the leasing office — in fact, they’ve been extremely accommodating and helpful whenever I needed to work with them. There is 24-​hour concierge service and maintenance has been incredibly helpful. I’ve been here years and one of the only issues I’ve had is that heater broke one time and they came really late at night to make sure it was fixed before we went to bed. So attentive. I highly recommend this building.

Horrible. Unhelpful staff. Unwilling to admit their mistakes.

I lived here for about a year and it was pretty terrible — mainly because the leasing office staff are so rude. I’ll offer just one example of many below.
Pros: location, decent price, people at front desk are nice
Cons: parking spots are very tight, leasing office staff are incompetent and rude.
The final straw for me at Meridian was when something happened with my online rent payment and staff was incredible rude about it. I have always paid my rent online. The third party website is not the best — but usually it was manageable. For some reason (that I never hear from the website company, even though I called three times), the e-​check did not go through and I was charged the returned check fee. According to my lease, I was in fact responsible for the charge for a returned check, regardless of reason — and at the end of the day, that was not what I had a problem with.
When I called the leasing office because I wanted to understand what was going on, instantly the staff member’s tone was defensive. I understand that they couldn’t waive the fee and that I needed to be directed to the third party — but instead of telling that to me in a nice, helpful way, she was short, rude and dismissive. Part of the job is to explain things or sometimes to deliver a piece of information that a resident may not like — but I would expect any staff member to do so politely, patiently, and kindly. This woman talked to me like I was an idiot, when in reality, it is just the first time this happened so I wasn’t sure what I needed to do to fix it for future payments. I ended the phone call because I was so shocked by how rude she was.
This is just one example. After the experiences I had at Meridian, I would never recommend anyone to live in the building. It’s as if they couldn’t care less and a resident is bothering them if you have a question or need something. I have never lived in a building where the leasing office was less helpful or less accommodating. Seriously, do not live here.

Living at the Meridian has been a fantastic experience! I have been here almost two years and have not had a single issue. The front desk staff is always friendly, and I’ve noticed they take the time to say ‘hello’ to everyone whenever they can. This small gesture makes me feel like I’m home every time I walk in. Even in the mornings, walking through the hallways, the cleaners are always greeting everyone. The office has always been easy to deal with, especially this new team which seems much more friendly and efficient. I can’t say enough wonderful things about maintenance! They are all so pleasant and always go above and beyond. I recently submitted a work order for a light bulb and they went ahead and also changed another light that they noticed was out that I had forgotten to mention. The amenities have slowly been improving: the landscaping at the entry, the flowers at the pool and rooftop, the awnings at all the entrances, the no smoking rule, the additional grill (so thankful for that!), extended amenity hours and improved resident events.
I recently thought about moving out, simply to try something different. So, I decided to visit ALL the buildings in this neighborhood. That’s 8 buildings by my boundary line. In two buildings, the staff was wearing jeans and flip flops or sneakers — these were new buildings with stainless, granite, etc. Two other buildings never took our contact information. One building refused to show us anything. Another never answered their door, never answered our calls or e-​mails, so never got to visit them. We were looking for an 800 sq ft or larger apartment, one of the buildings decided to show us a studio, with no closet, and suggested we put a wardrobe in the bathroom. The only building that was nice and welcoming to us was the other Meridian. Just looking for a large one bedroom, nothing compared space wise (especially closet and sunroom) to what we could get at Meridian. Needless to say, we won’t be moving out.
When you put it all together, this Meridian is easily the best option in the area. When I read the negative reviews, these reviewers just seem crazy, and I’m glad they are moving out (or are already out) so I don’t have to call them my neighbors. My neighbors are all awesome; some of us have become friends either from the hallway, mail room or rooftop, and we all love living here. Thanks, Meridian!

Just paid the final remains of what was an AWFUL life span at the Meridian at Gallery Place. So now I feel comfortable enough to write a strong, stern and honest review of this managed building.
Oh, and to TARYN S. from Meridian who keeps commenting about how sorry she is about the terrible experiences residents have had with their services, here’s a suggestion:
Get off of Unilocal and find a more proactive way to improve customer service for the Meridian. Read these reviews and then DO something about them. Most of these reviews are published by people AFTER they lived here… take the hint.
1. The facilities/​amenities
The apartment building itself is awesome. Relatively clean, functional and ample space to study, work, workout, swim, grill, chill etc… the building is pretty damn great. It’s in a phenomenal location, it’s insanely convenient and it’s got everything you’ll need in terms of a solid apartment building in DC.
2. The leasing office
They are terrible.
Incompetent is putting it mildly. The staff is rude, bigoted, ignorant, and have clearly not been properly trained in customer service. Their mission is to make money so if you are rich (and white?) you’ll do just fine here. My suggestion if you absolutely have to live in the Meridian is to find the simplest leasing option and stick with it. A cut and dry lease– no guarantor, no sublet, nothing.
Be rich, sign a lease and call it good. Try to avoid the leasing office as much as possible. Seriously, run.
3. The doormen (the only reason why I gave 2 stars instead of just 1 star)
These guys are awesome– friendly, courteous, strict with security, and down to earth good guys. I’ve told them that they are the selling points of the building. And that the staff of the leasing office should LEARN CUSTOMER SERVICE FROM THE DOORMEN and that they deserve a raise to no end. Wonderful people– I miss them dearly. I often brought them cupcakes.
4. Maintenance services
Most of the time, my experience with these guys has been good. They respond is you put in a service request, they are respectful about being in the apartment (especially if you aren’t there) and they were relatively polite. A few times however, they were trying to charge me and my roommates to fix the AC. We had put in a dozen requests (and they came promptly of course) but after the 12^th time I think they were feeling frustrated and said they would charge us to fix the AC. Anyone who has spent a summer in DC knows that it’s vital to have AC and we never overused it. I eventually reasoned with them that if the AC unit is so badly broken (not by us) why would we pay for it? They concurred but we never really got our AC unit totally fixed.
Bottom line: Don’t live here if you value your money and sanity.

If you read nothing else, read this: DO NOT MOVE HERE! Meridian at Gallery Place and Paradigm Management offer a horrific downtown DC experience, with no amenities, vomit in the hallways, and no attention to detail.
This morning, an employee in the leasing office, kindly titled an email to me: «Pay Your Rent.» I moved a month ago. It reminded me that, while my long national nightmare is over, I want to make sure that others don’t make the same mistake.
Here are a few reason why you should avoid this property:
It’s filthy. They encourage you to sign «lease amendments» to avoid rent increase. In theory, they’re looking out for you. In reality, this means they don’t have to clean the apartments – which is typically required before moving into a new unit. The result? You’re on the hook for a professional cleaning service or renting a carpet cleaner. Or both.
Did I mention it’s filthy? The dishwasher was old and mistreated. It was also connected to the garbage disposal. This left our dishes more dirty than if we had never ran the dishwasher in the first place.
No one cares your apartment is filthy and in disrepair. We inquired, officially, 4 times via email, and many more times in person, to have our problems addressed. Throughout an entire year, we were never able to use the dishwasher. (Leasing Agent responsible: Stephanie).
Everyone is incompetent. Obviously, this is no secret. Every review on this website highlights incompetence running amok. To give you an example, I spent an entire day at the DMV trying to register my car because they gave me a «lease amendment» instead of a «lease» to prove my residency. A management company that is responsible for over 1000 apartments in the District doesn’t know which documents are required for official residency purposes. After calling from the DMV, I waited nearly 3 hours for a fax to be sent. (Leasing Agent Responsible: Jamilla)
You might be delinquent on someone else’s unpaid utilities. The document they encourage you to sign, in lieu of a traditional lease agreement, makes you responsible the previous occupant’s unpaid utility bills. In my case, 7 years of utility bills. We called Pepco, Studebaker, and Washington Gas to explain that we hadn’t lived in the apartment when the past balance was accrued on the account. They were all understanding, and told us that our leasing office needed to update them on the current residents. We continued to be hounded by the utility companies like we were childish scofflaws because the leasing office could not sort this matter out.
Don’t lock yourself out. If you are a human being and suffer from human error and lock yourself out, you will not be helped. It is more emotionally beneficial to permanently live in the hallway than deal with their contagious misery.
Creepy door man. One door man stands at the front door and exclusively uses his authority to creep on women. If you happen to be a man, he will not open the door for you.
With the exception of Lowney (who works the door), the entire staff is unpleasant, rude, and completely unhelpful. You’ll never feel like the Meridian is your «home» because the leasing office goes out of their way to remind you that, in their mind, you are only a dumb, overpaying customer. Which you are if you live here.

Two words: Animal House. I toured this place and was taken up to a current apartment whose occupants had agreed to let the leasing staff show it to guests. The apartment smelled like pot and stale beer. There were red cups and beer cans all over the place, from a party the night before, and old pizza boxes and food littering the floor. People in the elevator were drinking and blasting music. I enjoy day drinking and having a good time, but don’t constantly want to be coming home to a frat party. If you do, then this place is for you.

I usually don’t write reviews on Unilocal,but I had a very unpleasant experience with this place. Upon arrival to DC, my new company put me in a 1-​bed room apartment for one week as a temporary housing option. Here are my issues with my stay, and I would definitely never stay there again or recommend it to a friend:
— although the 1bd apartment was beautifully decorated inside, it smelled of mold
— they don’t provide anything to wash dishes with. Not even a sponge. When asked about it, they told me to go to the store and buy the things myself.
— upon checking out, the staff in the lobby was very rude to me upon and showed me no respect and no consideration. I actually left in tears.
— The day before checking out, I was first told I could leave my luggage in the morning to come pick it up after I got back from work, and then I was told in the morning that I could not do that.
— during my my 1 week stay there, I overheard a few other residents saying how frustrating it is to live in this place in an elevator. Can’t be a good sign.
Don’t support this business. Find a business that has better principles and treats their clients in a kinder and more considerate manner.

Facilities, location, general aesthetics are all great. Prices are ridiculous and the staff might be the worst I’ve come into contact with. If you enjoy being lectured, talked down to and price gouged, you should live here.
I am moving out Nov. 1 and it cant come soon enough.
In one incident, a drunk frat dude (most of the residents there) bumped into my boyfriend and I in the elevator and by freak accident, my keys fell out of my hands and into the slit where the door closes. I called the front desk Sunday freaking out (because you have to have a key to even get in the front lobby or to ride the elevators at night) and they said this happens a lot — that a maintenance man will have to retrieve them but he won’t be in until the next day, so I should call back. I called back every day for THREE days and they gave me the run around, saying the maintenance guy wasn’t in or he was too busy — didn’t supply any contact info or timeline for when I could expect it. (Mind you, you are encouraged not to copy keys and I have a one bedroom place — it is a miracle my roommate put up with letting me in each day.) So on the fourth day, I call one line and they finally give me the name of the maintenance guy and tell me to call back tomorrow. I call back and ask for the man by name and get a «He’s not here.» I call another line and ask for him and he is there. (Magic!) My intentions were to to just see if after four days, I could get in touch with him to ask 1) if he got my request; 2) what kinda timeline we are looking at; and 3) how I can contact him if there is any trouble. He immediately launches into yelling at me about it being my fault and he has much more important things to do. Now, I don’t care if he told me it would’ve taken two weeks+, I just wanted to know he existed, knew about my problem and how long it might take so I could plan around it. After he yells at me, he says I should leave work (at 10 am) to get the keys. So I leave work to pick up the keys and the front desk guy proceeds to lecture me on how it was a courtesy that they got my keys and I shouldn’t be so rude next time. Thanks, dad!
Also, after raising the rent on us twice, my roommate and I decided it was time to move out. Not only did they give us the renewing/​not renewing form about a week and a half late, they required it to be turned in the SUNDAY before a holiday. My roommate and I were out of town, so we promptly turned in the form the Tuesday morning when we got back, saying we’d be out by Nov.1. (By the way, there are no listed penalties for turning in the form late as long as you turn it in and say you are in fact moving out, or else they will begin month-​to-​month charges). A couple weeks later we get a bill for about $ 250 of pro-​rated rent since we will be moving out Nov. 3. We never requested moving out Nov. 3 and it was pretty sneaky to make an important document like that due on a holiday weekend and not make clear that if you are late, you will pay.
Basically at every corner, they will make you pay for something — even if it is their fault.
Also, make sure that you never accidentally make a digit slip on an online order to be delivered to your apartment. I did that one time and the package was delivered to the front desk, signed for and confirmed by the company I ordered from and USPS. Not only did the front desk deny it, they talked to me like a child and chastised me for getting the address wrong. They said they NEVER received the package despite two other entities confirming delivery and signature then refused to help in anyway remedy the situation.
I was a very loyal tenet for two years. Respected my neighbors and the apartment building and was treated like trash by most of the staff members. Even when things were partly my fault, I owned up to it, just asked that they treat me with a little respect… but that was too much to ask. No one in that building has ANY customer service skills and that is a LARGE part of their job.

Now that I no longer live here, I feel like I can review it. A more correct rating of the Meridian might be a 2.5 star rating, but I’m feeling generous today. Here are a few things about the Meridian:
The Location: It’s in Chinatown, presumably you know that/​want to live in the area if you are trying to move here. Chinatown is a little weird sometimes, but that is definitely not the fault of the Meridian. Given this, the security in the building is good.
There are no balconies in the apartments. Also something you should have figured out before you have applied/​movedin.
The apartments are not updated, and ARE expensive. The building was built I think around 11 years ago, and the applicances/​countertops etc. have not been upgraded since… definitely time for an upgrade.
Most people there help to bring down the cost of apartments by turning the «sunroom» into an extra bedroom. Therefore, the building is full of young professionals/​law students/​interns. If this is what you want, then it’s very fun. I enjoyed it, but did come upon people literally unconcious after a night of partying on the front steps more than once and had to call ambulances etc.
The outdoor/​common areas have horrible hours. They close really early (10 pm on weekdays), and the pool closes even earlier.
You can’t walk up or down the stairs, because the doors dont open on individual floors. So much for trying to get your excercise.
There are a lot of rules, and you are treated like a child rather than a tenant.
The rooftop grills are useful and fun, when they’re open!
The staff/​leasing office/​concierge: There are some really nice people in there, and some super rude people. Not idea.

I lived in the Meridian at Gallery Place and now live in the Meridian at Braddock Station. The buildings are nearly identical.
Pluses– The location is unbeatable. The lobby and common areas are nice. The concierges are very friendly.
Minues– The leasing staff is incompetent. The fees are unbelievable. They charge you for anything you could possibly think of.

I toured the Meridian at Gallery Place after visiting the Meridian at Mt Vernon Square, a few blocks away. I found Gallery Place to be dingy, overpriced, and gross. The lobby was unimpressive, the gym archaic, and I got the distinct feeling there would be a bug issue as I toured the complex. The rent was $ 2195 (on special — half a month off) which is extreme considering for the same price you could live in Mt Vernon Square — owned by the same management company and have a dog (Gallery Place doesn’t accept dogs).
The rooftop areas were small and unimpressive. I walked into the club room, which wasn’t bad, but it was full of students studying on Macbooks. This basically rendered the club room useless for any of my purposes — the room is essentially a library. I need a club room I can actually use. The apartments are worth $ 1800 for the location alone, but not more than that.

Now that I am no longer living in this building and don’t really care about Unilocalers knowing where I (used to) live, I can review the Meridian. If you’re on a budget or would a prefer a less lush lifestyle, or if you’re above the age of 30, the Meridian is not for you. If you’re a Georgetown Law student or simply just a young professional that wants to live in a luxury apartment downtown, look no further. First, the location is unbeatable. Two blocks from the Chinatown Metro, four blocks from Union Station, a short walk to Metro Station, it really doesn’t get much better.
The Meridian really has everything you need: gym, parking spots, pool, roof top deck, lounge overlooking the city. The building is pretty secure and the doormen are super nice. It is definitely pricey though. I’m still not sure how I afforded it. It was never really my scene but my roommates and everyone else I knew that lived there loved it.

I’ve lived in the Meridian for three years now. Location; unbeatable. Price; reasonable. But I had continued to hear complaints about the leasing office and their draconian policies. However, as a responsible lease holder, I had NEVER experienced a problem with them… in fact, I had become something of an apologist when it came to the management company. They were always courteous and friendly to me, so I had no reason to think otherwise, until now.
There was an issue with the rent (which was paid on time), but they didn’t receive payment because of some ‘error with the system.’ I went down to the leasing office to ask about it, and they told me as was well, and not to worry about it. Then two days later, I receive a notification saying that they were not able to process the payment so I incurred not only a $ 40 return check fee, but also a $ 144.75 late rent fee. So let’s recap. I pay my rent on time. There’s a problem with the system, which becomes my fault, and now I’m out almost $ 200 bucks.
When I approached them about it, they basically told me to go fly a kite, and take it up with my bank.
Now, I’m starting to see where all of my friend’s horror stories came from. The leasing office couldn’t care less about keeping tenants because, guess what… they make money off of you leaving… AND they make money off new residents coming in with trumped up fees. They’ve basically rigged the deck so they can cheat you coming and going. It’s like living in a Vegas Casino.
Got to hand it to them… they’re smart, but I won’t be renewing my lease. There are other, much nicer places in the same block that have comparable rent.