Thank you to our fantastic Van Allen Apartments resident Tara Coons and her patient and sweet dog Felicity for being interviewed by the Troy Record about living in our community. Check out the article below!
LAUREN HALLIGAN – lhalligan@troyrecord.com Tara Coons and her dog, Felicity, go for a walk outside the clubhouse at Van Allen Apartments in North Greenbush.
LAUREN HALLIGAN LHALLIGAN@DIGITALFIRSTMEDIA.COM Inside a model apartment at Van Allen Apartments in North Greenbush.
N. Greenbush apartment complex welcomes pets without restrictions
NORTH GREENBUSH, N.Y. >> Finding a place to live with your pet can be a challenge for renters, but a local apartment community is welcoming one and all.
The newly opened Van Allen Apartments prides itself on being more than just pet friendly, but pet welcoming. It is the first local apartment complex to receive the Pets Are Welcome designation from the Humane Society of the United States, recognizing that all dogs are allowed, with no breed or weight restrictions.
Tara Coons, who has a 2-year-old, 100-pound Great Pyrenees mix named Felicity, was turned away from other area apartments because she was told her dog was too big. When she applied to Van Allen Apartments, however, they were both warmly welcomed.
Coons and Felicity were one of the first residents to move into the community in March. Coons said she appreciates the spacious layout and is excited for the two on-site dog parks that are being built soon.
“We like it a lot,” Coons said. “We are happy here.”
Felicity is adjusting well and quickly to apartment life, Coons said.
“She’s acclimated so fast,” Coons said, after moving from a house with a backyard.
Coons is an author who works from home, so she likes having Felicity around for company while she writes. Coons said Felicity has already made some friends in the neighborhood.
“We’ve met many, many nice people,” said Coons, who likes socializing with fellow dog owners.
Dogs do go through a behavior and socialization screening before they’re allowed into the community, but the staff bases its decision on the individual pet, not their breed or size.
“We’re not stereotyping,” said Jesse Holland, president of Sunrise Management & Consulting, which manages the property, a joint project with Amedore Group.
Sunrise decided to try the pet welcoming model at Van Allen Apartments because of questions they were receiving at other sites it manages.
“We felt this was a good place to start,” Holland said, citing the spacious grounds at the Van Allen community. “It would be built from the ground up so we could design in features.”
Those features include the dog parks, a walking trail and a pet grooming station. Furthermore, rules regarding leashes and picking up after a pet could be established from the get-go. When someone with a dog moves in, they are provided with information on helping pets adjust to the community. Additionally, the staff has been trained by the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society, which Holland said was integral to helping the project become a model community for people and their pets.
“We’re trying to be not only welcoming, but supportive,” Holland said.
Not everyone at Van Allen Apartments is a pet owner, though. The complex, which will have a total of 224 units in 20 buildings once completed, will designate about half of its buildings for pet owners, with the others to be pet-free.
“I think part of the key here is that balance,” Holland said, adding that his company wants to accommodate both types of residents.
The biggest complaints about living in a community with pets are usually noise and owners not picking up after their dogs, but by having separate buildings for residents without pets, those people shouldn’t be bothered by barking. As for the grounds, the management company has each resident dog’s DNA information on file, so owners can be held responsible if they aren’t following cleanup rules.
There are currently 17 pets living at Van Allen Apartments, including cats, as well as dogs. Of the 116 units built so far, about 50 have been leased, Holland said.
In addition to the pet amenities, residents can also enjoy a clubhouse-style common area and fitness center, with a pool and patio opening soon. Other amenities include electronic key access, oversized kitchen islands, granite countertops and private balconies or patios.
One-, two- and three-bedroom apartments are available in both pet and non-pet buildings, with a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony to be announced soon.
This is Albany-based Sunrise Management & Consulting’s second apartment project in Rensselaer County. A converted elementary school in Averill Park began leasing units last year as Homeroom Lofts. More information on Van Allen Apartments, located at 10 Van Allen Way, off Route 43, is available at www.vanallenapartments.com. For more information or to schedule a tour, call 389-2004.
For more information on Van Allen Apartments, www.vanallenapartments.comvisit .
