The Tides

I visited a friend who lives on the 13^th floor and I was impressed with the views her unit had of the Lakeshore East park and Lake Michigan. The main lobby and hallways were modern, clean and bright. The front desk person was nice and had our names on a guest list and once we said our names, smiled and guided us to the elevator. Lakeshore East is a really cute area. The huge selling point is the park that is extremely well maintained, away from the tourists, along with a Mariano’s grocery store steps away. Being close to the lakefront trail and Millennium Park isn’t too shabby either.

I’ve loved living here so far. .. I’m so, so much happier than where I was in the Loop, where it was incredibly loud and filled with unsavory characters, and many college students. I’m wondering if the negative reviews are from those who haven’t had grittier experiences in life, in regards to their living situations.
This is an amazing place to live and I’m appreciative of it. Yes, Lakeshore East is a little set back from everything, but that makes it safe, clean, and quiet. Maggie Daley Park is just kicking into gear and it’s AMAZING, right in your backyard, with a climbing wall, rollerskate/​rollerblade rink (rollerblading is free and open to the public til 10:00 p.m.), tennis courts, and lessons of many kinds, for very low prices. Then you’ve got the Lakeshore Path right there, Grant Park/​Millennium Park, kayaking on the river, AMC Theatres, the beach for swimming. .. The Pedway, too, is an interesting little world into itself. LSE is indeed a special place.
What else? Mariano’s across the park, looking out at the moonlight shimmering off the lake (and the lightning sometimes, very cool), nice neighbors. .. The units are quite nice and very quiet. In-​unit W/​D is a huge bonus. Definitely try to get a south-​facing unit with a balcony. Oh, and the amenities are awesome. .. the 16^th-​floor hot tubs, sky lounge, and unlimited printing are a huge boon.
Also, management really seems to take care of the building. I hear the carpet outside my unit being vaccumed nearly every day, weekends too. Things are very clean and orderly. This is a professional operation, a far cry from the «typical» Chicago property management experience. I know because I’ve lived through the very worst.
I’m in my thirties and after ten years of trying different neighborhoods in Chicago have finally found my «happy place.» Maybe you will, too.

Fantastic building! I wish I could buy a unit but they are only for rent. I recommend this safe clean area to anyone. It’s quiet and easy to get wherever you would like to go. Bars/​restaurants/​grocery stores all close by! Great staff who will help you as well.

Wouldn’t recommend it. Management are rude, lots of things don’t work consistently.
Our screen door & toilets broke multiple times, and walls cracked by our washing machine twice and maintenance never fixed anything really to the point of being actually fixed. Rude staff, and act dishonestly.
Have heard that building has issue too. Check into that before renting.
Screen Door falling off 7 times that I can recall. Toilet in 2^nd bathroom never worked in full, said that it worked fine, but it didn’t flush fully.
Avoid this pretty exterior and overpriced place and live elsewhere, unless you like being treated rudely, and dealing with a dishonest maintenance team who doesn’t fix anything.
The door men are nice, so thats something…

We just moved in.(November 1, 2014). Although it has only been a month the community is wonderful, as it the staff and management. The Tides gives you city living with a touch of suburbia (the park). This is a great place to call home.

Love living here. Staff is super friendly. Amenities are amazing. And it really feels like home! Gym, Spa, Pool, location and more. So far living here (5months) it’s been awesome. No complaints. Almost forgot. Pet friendly. :)

I called the Tides my home for four lovely years and honestly, I enjoyed my time there. The only reason I moved was because when I wanted to move into a one bedroom with a balcony, they didn’t have one available.
I lived on the tenth floor and still had a pretty stellar view. I faced north and saw everything from navy pier to the Hancock. My neighbors were quiet, never really had an issue. To be honest, it was rare I would run into any of them. Many have come and gone while I was there so maybe there was only a handful that lived there for as long as I did. I know a lot of the previous reviews complained about water damage form water pipes bursting but thank goodness I never had that issue.
Few key points:
–The 16^th floor was great. The gym was pretty big and had a variety of machines. There was also a game room that had a pool table, tv and poker table. There was a business center with computers and printers. Best part about that? FREE PRINTING. This grad student’s dream. The floor also had a common area that had free coffee during certain times in the AM and PM and a hot tub/​steam room. The pool was an okay size, couldn’t complain. They also had two grills which were always in good shape (and clean, thank goodness).
–Management office: Diana is WONDERFUL. She is seriously a breath of fresh air. Always SO nice and helpful. Never made you feel like you were a bother. Miriam on the other hand. how does she still work there? She isn’t the most pleasant to deal with and honestly if I needed to go to the office about something and saw she was there, I’d turn around and try again the next day. She had an attitude and would make you wait even when you were the only one in their office, what? That’s something I won’t miss.
–John at the front desk is absolutely amazing. I wish there was a better way to convey how much I appreciated having him up front. SO nice and helpful from day one. Whenever my parents would come to visit, he’d call them sir and ma’am and would open the door for them. What a sweetheart.
–The maintenance staff was also pretty good. Always got things done in a timely manner, always said good morning to you and would hold the elevator doors so you can scurry in. I’ll actually miss them. Raul was fabulous.
–The neighborhood: so I moved in in 2010 which was before Marianos and all the other little shops opened. Honestly, the only thing in the neighborhood at that time was the fifth third bank and Caffe Rom. Once the grocery store opened, the neighborhood boomed and my rent went up as well lol. I can’t complain. I still think the neighborhood is such a quiet little spot in the heart of downtown. Close to everything you need, better yet it’s all walking distance. The only thing that I wasn’t a huge fan of are all the segways that go through the park and almost run you over. Also they are opening up Gems World Academy (which will eventually be kindergarten — 8) right next door. That was also something I wasn’t a huge fan of. That will most definitely change the quiet of the area with all the kids, school buses, pickup/​drop off. Ugh, I have a headache just thinking about it.
–The neighbors: varied from grad students (a lot from Booth), young professionals, and families with small kids. Again, never had an issue. All were very friendly.
Overall, my experience at the Tides was pretty good. Rent may be a little bit on the higher side, I was in a studio and my rent went from $ 1300 in 2010, $ 1199 in 2011, and ended at $ 1595 during my last year there. My friends thought I was crazy but honestly with all the utilities included (in unit washer dryer, cable package included in rent, free wifi as long as you get your own router and the only thing I paid for was electric?!), a grocery right across the street, the beautiful park right in front, and its proximity to everything around here?! Goodness, I’d gladly pay that price with a smile on my face.

About to move out in the next month or so after two years at the Tides. Overall I am not impressed.
Location and common areas — Amenities are good, the park is very well maintained and really cute, common areas are taken of, love having Marianos across the park. That’s 4.5 stars.
Apartments — I have a one bedroom. It’s pretty small and feels like a box. But it’s ok. Very functional. Has all the right appliances. It basically fulfills its role. That
s 3 stars.
The management — Talk to Diana if you can. She is very sweet. Avoid Miriam. Very unpleasant, always feel like she is attacking me, genuinely doesnt care about tenants. You will get significant rent increases every year. Not only that but they will also reduce/​remove some of the benefits or discounts they gave you when you signed, so the real, final increase will be even bigger. Attitude has changed. In the past, when I called them with an issue everything would be taken care of swiftly and smoothly. Now it’s ‘here’s the number, deal with it’. That’s 2 stars.
A sore point since last year — Last year they sent us packages to renew our leases asap at some point in May. 2 days after one of the deadline for renewal with a discount had passed, massive construction i.e. a whole new building, started right next to the Tides. And when I say right next I mean that the distance between the two buildings seems to be maybe 10 feet? Think they would have mentioned that to us? When confronted about it response was oh those are independent events and we are not in charge of the construction. Sure… so they had no idea right? Of course, the rent still increased. I am paying almost $ 200 more per month than last year (rent increase + removal of a discount) with noise starting at 8.30am (think drilling), an entire sidewalk closed, and other construction side effects. 1 star.

Positives: Great location with access to a fantastic park and a Mariano’s grocery store.
Negatives: Pool is more like a wading pool than a lap pool, units are small for the price, corners were cut on apartment finishes (e.g., granite island, but faux granite counter tops), the doormen were creepy (they would always talk to my fiancée, but not me even though I am very friendly), and, in my personal experience, the management office was unwilling to do anything when a chain-​smoking neighbor moved in down the hall. His habit was the epitome of a nuisance as his cigarette smoke infiltrated my unit on a nightly basis.
I would look elsewhere.

I’m actually pretty disgusted with Magellan Development Group. We REALLY wanted to live at The Tides at Lakeshore East and went back and forth emailing with Gabrielle there. I even asked for the Breed Restriction list of dogs ahead of time. Once she sent that to me and I saw my dog was not on it, we started talking about options. Then she asked me what kind of dog I had. When I told her an English Mastiff she told me that those breeds were not accepted. However, they were not on the list, and if any breed with a «Mastiff» lineage was not accepted-​that should be stated.
I also find it odd they call themselves «Dog Friendly» with no weight/​height restrictions when almost ALL of their buildings have a weight/​height restriction and the ones that do not have every large yet docile dog (St. Bernards, Great Danes, etc.) on their Breed Restriction list. I am not a fan of doggie discrimination and it should certainly not matter how big your dog is, it should matter how they act. Our Mastiff is a trained therapy dog and is the very well behaved, probably better than most 10 pound dogs.

The Tides is in an idyllic neighborhood and we were happy for the years we were there… HOWEVER:
— expect a 10% rent increase every year with no negotiation possiblities at all. «We do not negotiate rents…» According to the staff at the building most people stay only 1 – 2 years, the building has HIGH turnover rates.
— the rental agents here lie about things when you tour the place and all the tenants know it. We were told «Oh they’re building a garage in front of your city-​view apartment» and in reality they built another high-​rise, wrecking our city view. Oh and we got another 10% rent hike after that too. I recently ran into another tenant who was like «They say they’re building a 3 story school next door… I bet it will be 12 stories.» #troo
— if you have a balcony on the lower floors expect drunk people to throw full beer cans, wine glasses, beer bottles, cigarette butts, toys, frisbees and other things from 30+ stories above you onto your balcony. The force accumulated by these objects during the fall is enough to crush your skull. When you complain to the staff you’ll be told to «Just call the police.» Basically, if you live on a lower floor and you have a balcony do NOT expect to use it without taking your life into your hands.
Enjoy your 1 – 2 year stay there, it’s hard not to!

Great location, great door staff, and great ²⁴⁄₇ (or so it seems) service! Oh and free coffee/​tea every morning on the 16^th floor? AWESOME.
UPDATE: now that I have been here for about two years… my rating REMAINS at 5 stars! The door staff is beyond friendly and makes any Monday morning a happier one (because who honestly likes Monday morning). The shuttle they have in the mornings to the bus stop or the corner of Mich/​Randolph is so convenient when it is super cold or pouring down rain. Also, when you renew your lease ahead of time you often have a perk of a discount of some sort!
Best location in the downtown area if you ask me. Dog park, Grocery store (that is AMAZING) a few steps away, and the beautiful Lakeshore East park as your backyard? Ill take it.

I’ve lived at The Tides for almost a year and it’s been a great experience. I have a beautiful 44^th floor corner unit with a balcony that over looks the city from one side, and the park and lake from the other. Everything is new and clean. The staff is very prompt and friendly, including the office, doormen, and maintenance crew. Anything needing to fixed in my apartment has happened in less than 24-​hours and it’s always correct. I’ve loved the gym which is never crowded, the pool is great, and the free coffee in the mornings is a nice touch. Walking distance to the River, Lake, Park, and great options like Michigan Ave., State St., CVS, the huge AMC, and wonderful Marianos supermarket. If this is the type of city highrise living you want, the Tides is a great option… I’ll miss it!

I toured The Tides while looking for an apartment and was really impressed. The apartments were nice with pet-​friendly units available, and the prices were extremely reasonable. The amenities were awesome, and the park outside is simply unbeatable.
My first tour fell through because they «over-​booked,» but I wanted to see this place so badly I drove all the way back a week later. The leasing agent, Steve, was an absolute sweetheart and did a wonderful job explaining the building and answering any and all questions.
Three factors which ultimately turned me away:
1. Construction. Although I looked at a South-​facing unit, there is a building going up directly North of The Tides which will result in lots of noise and a loss of views for all N-​facing residents (and the fitness centre).
2. Location. The Tides is gorgeous, the park is gorgeous, there’s a grocery store with nice dining inside just across the park, and it’s close to Millennium Park and the lake. It just wasn’t the right location for me. It would be more fitting for someone who works in the financial district or is in their late 20’s/early 30’s and already somewhat settled down.
3. Close to the lake does not mean close to accessing the lake; the nearest lakefront path is a mile away.

This is the 3^rd building that I have lived at in the Lakeshore East area. With that being said I love the park and the community that lakeshore east provides def a nice lifestyle in downtown Chicago.
The Tides has without a doubt been the nicest of those properties.
To begin the apartments are beautiful very spacious with great views of the park and lake, which is generally hard to find in most high rises.
The amenities are also great. I use the gym every morning and they did not sacrifice on equipment, space or treadmills. The lounge area which provides coffee and wifi is also probably the best in the city. Beating out some of the other larger and more expensive buildings I have visited or lived.
Finally the staff at the Tides is one of the best management teams I have met. I have and enjoyed all of the door staff who greet you by name every morning or evening. Also the maintenance and leasing staffs are very kind and always cheerful and willing to help without hesitation.
Hope this was helpful and if you have not done so yet be sure to check out The Tides!
Eric

I lived in Tides for two years now. Although the apartments are modern, a few things have really made for a negative experience. First and foremost is the fact that the heat and AC are controled by the building. This would seem a minor inconvenience, except that, management waits an excessive amount of time before switching from cold to heat and from heat to cold. Thus, I have been freezing in my apartment while the temperature is 48 degrees outside for 4 days, this is unacceptable. When the summer comes, one is often burning in the apartment for close to a month before they switch the AC on.
It seems a relative simple task to look at the weather forecast for the next few days and make the appropriate adjustment. Or to conceede to the tenants requests to turn the heat on.
Next, the patio is always locked so you can never use the patio or the grill. Second, the units have a single sink and no garbage disposal. No garbage disposal seems minor, until you continually have to figure out a way to disgard food and clean the sink out.

I just moved in, but I’m already completely obsessed with my new apartment. I love everything about it and the building. Seriously, no complaints! The people are nice, the view is beautiful, etc, etc. I can’t wait for the pool to open and to meet some more of my new neighbors!
4÷27÷12 Update: Not renewing my lease after they raised my rent $ 340 a month. $ 1940 for a convertible? Ridiculous! Most of the people I talk to in the building who moved in around the same time I did are moving out as well. Why chase away your loyal residents? Downgrading from 5 stars to 3.
I’m moving out, but staying the neighborhood– Lakeshore East is awesome.

Okay so after two years of living at this building, we just got an offer to renew our lease with a ~$ 150/​month increase in our rent (!). This is after a summer when our air conditioner never worked well enough to get the temp in our bedroom below 85 deg F, a broken freezer, and a dishwasher that barely works. We have been willing to look the other way on all of this junky stuff because of the relatively low price for rent and awesome location but no more!
The Tides has overpriced pseudo-​luxury apartments filled with non-​functioning air-​conditioners and poor-​to-​non-​functioning kitchen appliances. I would no longer recommend living at this place.

I am beyond annoyed with this place right now, thank goodness I am about to move out. I pay a ton of my to live here and I am sweating my but off (thanks to 2 tube HVAC that has already been turned to heat and they refuse to turn back to a/​c) and I have a leak in my bathroom ceiling coming from the apartment above me that has not yet been fixed. The area is great, but for the price it really isn’t worth it.

The worst management ever! Don’t talk to Miriam … talk about attitude. I am paying a lof to money so she can be rude and obnnoxious
miss my old apt at Columbus Plaza.