Lamplighter Village

I have lived here at Lamplighter for almost a year. The staff are wonderful and helpful. If you have a problem, they are quick to fix the issue. One time I was having trouble with my car and a friend was helping me diagnose the issue but did not have the correct tools. One of the maintenance men stopped and offered his tools to fix my squeaky belt when he could have kept on walking. The staff care, they know you by name and don’t just take your money and push you out the door. The staff put on one of the scariest Haunted House’s I have seen in a long time this last year (2015). The kids had such a blast.
Sure, the neighborhood is not the best, but the staff go out of their way to help make our area as safe as possible with community meetings, kid afternoon lunch program during the summer and monthly resident get-​togethers so we can meet out neighbors.
Best of all, this is a pet friendly apartment living and where neighbors really do care about each other…
I would give it a 5-​star, but there is no workout room and the community room does not have air conditioning.

Let me tell about my experience with this apartment complex. I moved to Lamplighter from Ohio, having no knowledge of Minnesota. I decided on Lamplighter based on price, location, and pictures posted online.
When I arrived the neighbors were not friendly and the apartment building is located in a neighborhood with a high crime rate. The apartment was not clean and needed cleaning before I could get settled in. After being there for a month it was to the point I couldn’t live there any longer and asked to be let out of my lease and move to another StuartCo property. After some push back from the property manager, her boss finally allowed me to move to another property. I lived in the apartment for 2 months total, and was physically there for one month as I was traveling for the whole first month.
After vacating the property and being allowed to move to another property I received my security deposit back less $ 190. I was charged $ 100 for being «let out of my lease» also described in the same line as a cleaning charge. Also, $ 90 for a cleaning and deodorizing fee for «smoking» in an apartment that was NEVER smoked in. I feel both of these charges were penalties for speaking out against the living conditions and surrounding neighborhood. The property manager wasn’t happy that ALL of her apartments were not filled… which clearly must be a number they are supposed to hit for their performance standards.
The property manager will act like she is your best friend to your face, but is quick to take advantage any way she can so please beware. I never write reviews but I am this time because I don’t want to see someone else fall into the same position I was in, especially relocating out of state.