Royal Arsenal Riverside, SE18

With regards to building and property management, Rendall & Rittner tend not to be the most transparent with their costings, which seemingly continue to increase the service charges year on year. Many residents have appealed to Berkeley to review their tenure as a great number who attend regular residents meetings find it difficult to communicate or get straight answers to simple questions. Given the ever increasing number of buildings on the development, there should be certain economies of scale which we just don’t seem to ever see.

The community heating scheme is my biggest bugbear, however. I don’t see why residents should be forced into a monopoly, with SSE charging whatever extortionate rates they please for both standing charge and unit energy cost. Residents should have options, especially when the reliability of the unit has been so appalling over the past ten years. It may well be green, but it certainly must have paid for itself many times over by now – the standing charge alone is three times what it would be for those on the national grid.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Woolwich could always benefit from more mid market food options. There are plenty of pubs around, however these tend to be the lower end of the market and most do not offer food. The only real options are the Great Harry (Wetherspoons), the two Youngs pubs on the development which offer almost identical menus and then the Tap Room which although nice enough, only offers pizzas due to its smaller size. It would be nice to see the Dial Arch and the Guardhouse owned by different breweries to increase the variety of both beer and food options – they’re literally opposite each other so I can’t really understand the purpose.

Open spaces are done well – there is sufficient green space to make the area not feel too overcrowded, though I do see that the later phases of development seem to be going higher and higher as the available land finally starts to dry up.

Transport links are good in Woolwich, with access to buses, the DLR, overground railway and cycle routes over to Greenwich etc. The delay in Crossrail as been a significant disappointment, particularly as it was used as a major selling point for the property – distance from the city is a bit of a persistent problem as it just takes far too long to get anywhere!

The street outside my flat is pedestrianised, so immediate traffic noise isn’t too much of an issue, though the nearby road is still audible. Parking is fairly limited, though I have been able to find a space for visitors when necessary by requesting a temporary pass from the concierge. We occasionally have anti-social behaviour, but this is generally dealt with fairly promptly on reporting to development security.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

The true ongoing cost of the community heating scheme and when Crossrail was actually likely to arrive.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

A bit of a mixed bag really – some issues get tended to fairly swiftly, but then some require continual follow ups and chasing. Often you are told something will be resolved soon or that a certain individual or department will get back to you, but then you hear no more.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

The local neighbourhood is quiet and peaceful, however, it has all the shops needed with walking distance. A big plus, a very easy walk to the riverside.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish that we knew about the common ventilating system before I moved in, sometimes we can smell cigarettes through the ventilator when some neighbours are being inconsiderate.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

We rent through an agency, so they deal with any problems if needed.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

The events at Woolwich Works and the Saturday Farmers Markets are some great perks on the development. Plenty of options for shops with more still coming.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Honestly just make the most of everything on your doorstep, because there is a lot here.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

They have been fairly good, they will send someone out to look at the issue however it seems their handyman doesn’t always know how to fix things. Our landlord is a smaller letting agent who manage some a few properties across the development.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Great riverside location with excellent transport links. The Elizabeth Line will mean you are 20 mins from the West End. More life now Woolwich Works and Punchdrunk has opened. Could do with more restaurants in Woolwich, at the moment it’s more tilted towards takeaways. Nice to be out of central London on the river, but close enough to get in for work and leisure.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

It’s quiet development on the whole, not much nightlife if that’s what you are after

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

The facilities team are pretty good with dealing with issues, property management not so good.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Woolwich Arsenal is a fantastic place to live. You have all the amenities and stores nearby that are needed, and there’s nothing better than starting or ending your days with a river walk.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Packages are constantly stolen and security feels like it’s gone down a bit.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

We had a leak and that took a few months to fix, granted it was during the pandemic. Could’ve been quicker.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Very nice place to live – great sense of community and amazing amenities. It’s very convenient when it comes to transport links as well. Crime would be one of the things that I like the least about the surrounding area but that’s not the case within the development itself.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I don’t think there’s anything of the sorts – I was very well aware of everything when it comes to the area and the development before moving in.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

There have been times when we’ve reported noise coming from other flats and that hasn’t been dealt as well as it could have been – they’re usually very good at tackling faults within the building though.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

The local area is lovely to live in, a lot of greenery and beautiful historic buildings. There are also quite a few shops, restaurants, markets (every second Saturday in RAR, every day except Sundays across the road from RAR) and other services (gym, GP, dentist, etc.) within walking distance. There are a few parking spaces on the street, and some buildings have their own parking, so car-wise it is a calm area (only local traffic).

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Building 22 has a few entrances, which can be confusing when expecting deliveries.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

This is not applicable as I have not raised problems or issues. Any questions that were not problems (bike registration, parcel pick up, etc) have always been dealt with appropriately.

How could anyone want anything else.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Amazing shops, restaurants and location, just the perfect place.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I had know of this place sooner

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Any issues are swiftly dealt with by the management team, fantastic service

Facilities wise, the gym, concierge, parks and the overall maintenance of all these things I can’t fault or find any negative. They have a fortnightly farmers market, and other activities throughout the year in the area and they’re all amazing, even the street food vendors they have on rotation by the gates.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

The area is lovely, there’s a few local shops and eateries with some new ones on the way. The opening of the Elizabeth line soon will also add to the convenience of travel with already great services by train and DLR. My area specifically is perfect, there’s a nice small park across the road, it’s peaceful and all is good. I know there can be some noisy parts in the extended area, most notably towards the main road and towards the Woolwich center, the Tesco and M&S do get the odd thief bolting out their doors..

Overall though, it’s a lovely area to be in and the few issues i think you’d get anywhere and they’re minimal and don’t detract from the overall beauty and good vibes you get from being here.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

The only thing I can really say, which is something i’m not sure how we’ll deal with or what the outcome will be in the end is now with the price cap increasing, and our water is communal but also listed as a business and not residential… (I could be loosely describing this) our water rates could increase quite a bit, which could be a problem.

Otherwise I’m a happy bunny here, the area is lovely, I can only give reasons to come join us here and the positives.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Honestly, we’ve not had any issues personally or by the time there has been an issue there’s been an update or something has been done to address it. There’s been a couple of times there have been some water issues but this hasn’t affected us or the downtime was so short it was un-noticeable to us.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

The good aspect about this area is that its always clean neat and tidy. Secondly there is no traffic into royal arsenal so its nice and quite with just the residential or deliveries. The best part is that the cross rail is opening next week on the 24/05 so journey time into central will be reduced

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I wish I knew about how convenient this place is. Lots of housing is coming up and house prices are going up

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

I have not had any problems or any issues with my property

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Nice area within east distance to all sorts of public transport.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

What changes would be happening in the development.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

They have sorted any issues that have been raised.