The good:
We are very fortunate to have incredibly friendly and helpful neighbors within our development. We feel happy with the overall proximity to Chichester, Arundel, Bognor Regis, and many beautiful walks near the South Downs National Park. We often enjoy dinner and or drinks at the local pub The Old Stables which is walking distance from the estate.
The Bad:
One of the biggest reasons we chose Leaf Living Fontwell was because of the promise of a playground for our son to be able to play with other kids. Unfortunately the playground has been closed off for the entirety of our tenure here with no signs of opening up. It’s gotten to the point where we feel hopeless that it will ever be a priority to open up. We’ve talked with many other families within our community who feel similar frustrations with the lack of priority to finish and open up the park.
Additionally, we have grown very tired of the constant construction always happening in our neighborhood. We constantly share the road with earth movers using the main roads and we worry about running over a nail or screw. The construction noise starts up every morning when the sun comes up and continues all day until the sun goes down. It’s become very tiresome and no longer enjoyable to walk through the neighborhood because of constant dirt, and pylons, and trucks/earthmovers/blockades/fences constantly in the way.
Because the community is all new build, we’ve had quite a bit of black mold pop up on our baseboards and in humid areas. We found traces in some of our bedrooms where we obviously sleep so it’s been a constant battle to check for it and clean as soon as it appears. During the summer it was ok to open the windows to circulate air, but in the winter it just keeps popping up and it’s not really an option to open up all your windows when it’s cold outside.
Please review your development:
Overall the kitchen design is pretty good. We very much wish there was a bit more storage for plates/pantry/misc kitchen items but we were able to create storage beyond that. The appliances are pretty decent though the washer/dryer usually needs extra time added to get your clothes completely dry. The building is very quiet and feels very insulated from wind/heat/cold which has been great.
One thing that I think our development could benefit from is a small store on site to pick up small grocery items. Additionally it would be great to open the road so that the community has access to Arundel road. It’s been closed off since we moved in which has been inconvenient when you just need to fill up your car or run to the Waitrose.
Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:
I wish I had known the reality of the playground not being open for many months. One of the main reasons we chose this space was because we were under the impression we’d have access to the field/playground for kids to play. Instead it’s been completely closed off to anyone in the community with no word on when it will be opened. To be completely honest, we would’ve chosen a different location had we known we wouldn’t have access to it.
How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:
Generally building management has been quick to respond and they are always friendly. There have been a few isolated times though where we’ve not received any help with a request but I’d say overall they’re quick to respond and try to keep us updated.
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