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High-rise Condo
Downtown Evanston, 1720 Maple Ave | Evanston
Overview
Photos
Amenities

Top Amenities

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  •  24-Hour Front Desk
  •  Cat friendly
  •  Dog friendly
  •  Fitness Center
  •  Granite Countertops
  •  Hardwood Floors
  •  Indoor Pool
  •  Parking Garage  
  •  Private Balconies
  •  Stainless Steel Appliances
  •  Walk-in Closets
  •  Washer/Dryer In Unit

User Rating

8.1
Great
111 Reviews

About this Location

Whole Foods Market
7 min via 213 (bus)
UP-N (rail) - 4 min
208/213/250 (bus) - 5 min
The Lakefill
20 min walk
Lots of bars and
restaurants nearby

Pricing 

1 Bedroom, 1 Bath
$2,300+
2 Bedrooms, 2 Baths
$3,000+
3 Bedrooms, 2 Baths
$4,200+
Schedule Appointment At
(872) 704-8022
  • Bedrooms

    •  Walk-in Closets
  • Building Related

    •  Elevators
  • Included

    •  Heat Included
    •  Water Included
  • Kitchen

    •  Dishwasher
    •  Garbage Disposal
    •  Granite Countertops
    •  Microwave
    •  Refrigerator
    •  Stainless Steel Appliances
    •  Stove & Oven
  • Laundry

    •  Washer/Dryer In Unit
  • Living Room

    •  Air Conditioning  
    •  Hardwood Floors
    •  Large Windows
    •  Lots of Sunlight
  • Parking & Transportation

    •  Bike Storage
    •  Parking Garage  
  • Pet Terms & Amenities

    •  Cat friendly
    •  Dog friendly
  • Security & Maintenance

    •  24-Hour Front Desk
    •  On-site Maintenance
  • Sports & Fitness

    •  Fitness Center
    •  Indoor Pool
  • Storage

    •  Additional Storage Available
  • View

    •  Private Balconies
X

Overall rating 8.1/10, based on 111 renter reviews Write a review

8.8
Location
6.2
Amenities
6.7
Management
8.8
Value
5.5
Social
9.3
Safety
Excellent
48
Great
40
Good
22
Average
1
Terrible
0

Optima Views reviews and highlights

  • Building has heated parking
  • Heat and cable included are huge perks
  • Nice amenities and considerate staff
  • Ample natural light
  • Great amenities
  • Very close to all the bars and nightlife
  • Great building with lots of Kellogg Students
  • Landlord is great
  • Small gym, pool and hot tub
  • Fairly high rent prices
  • Floor to ceiling windows
  • Feels safe and secure
  • Awesome views of Chicago and the Lake
  • Amazing upscale building with good amenities
  • In the heart of downtown Evanston
  • Units are spacious
  • Great location
  • Very comfortable, convenient and clean
  • Most of the doormen are really nice and helpful
Filter reviews for
6
Good
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Good but expensive

The property is decent but it is quite expensive. We have two dogs and a small child so our options in Evanston were fairly limited. At the time we were moving this was the only available place we could find close to campus that would accept us with pets.

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  • Family w/ children
  • Pet owner
  • 2 beds / 2 baths
7
Good
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Spacious, Downtown, rent-from-owner

OV is located in downtown Evanston, near the movie theater. It's a longer walk to the Jake (about a mile; ~15 min) and a little further to the new building. Building is a 3 minute walk from Davis Street Metra and Purple Line stations.
OV residents rent directly from the owner. This means that from unit to unit, the monthly rent, conditions of the apartment and maintenance will vary. Our apartment faces East (away from the train tracks) so is relatively quiet. Most leases are for two years. The building has doormen, a small gym, a small indoor pool, an outdoor deck (not for winter use), and options for parking and storage. I believe that most units allow pets.
There is a good contingent of Kellogg students living in the building, but not enough to "take over" (i.e. E2). 2 BR / 2 BA units are great for roommates!

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  • Roommates
  • 2 beds / 2 baths
8
Great
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Great place to live at

Apartment is very spacious with a lot of closet space. Heated garage is great for those that have a car. Building management can be a bit annoying (doesn't allow sublet, odd moving in policies, etc).

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  • Couple
  • Pet owner
  • 1 bed / 1 bath
9
Excellent
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Views

A lot of space and no issues with the apartment at all. Awkward angles can make layout a bit difficult, but opportunity to be creative too.

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  • Roommates
  • 2 beds / 2 baths
9
Excellent
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Great apartment, bad management.

The apartment is really good with great amenities and awesome view. However, the building's management is extremely strict - you have to schedule elevator time to bring any large item up, so several times I had online purchases returned because the doormen did not accept it.

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  • Couple
  • 1 bed / 1 bath
7
Good
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
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Safety

Optima Views 1BR

OV is a solid place to live with a decent amount of Kellogg students. Better value than E2 and two blocks away, but amenities are not as good (pool is indoor and very small, as is the gym). Lots of students had bad experiences with scheduling move-in and delivery times with the property manager, but he has recently been moved to a different building. Try to visit your unit before renting, some layouts are a little angular / funky, and units on the same side of the building as the El can have noise issues. Overall good place to be.

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  • 1 bed / 1 bath
7
Good
Overall score
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Optima Views Review

Solid but nothing fancy

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  • Couple
  • 1 bed / 1 bath
7
Good
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Great room, square footage, and location

15 minute walk to Kellogg Jacobs Center; 1 minute walk to Metra (Davis Station). Great price per square foot
. Great value (aesthetically pleasing but no frills)Rooms oddly shaped and bedrooms of unequal sizes.
Slightly annoying property managemet. Property management does now allow subleasing and requires 2 year contract.

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  • Roommates
  • 2 beds / 2 baths
8
Great
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Wonderful location and excellent for mature residents

This is not party central (a la E2). It is treated well, kept clean, often quiet, and has a great location in Evanston. Residents have struggled to maintain a good relationship with the building manager, but he recently left the building and students are hopeful to create a more healthy relationship with the manager. Keep in mind that half or more of the residents are senior citizens / older adults - rules are quite prohibitive for students (ie: there is a steep $250? move in and move out fee and freight elevator rentals for move-in must be reserved in specific time windows making moving harder than it has to be). Still, 100% worth the hassle and would live here 10/10 times if I had to make the choice again.

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  • Couple
  • 1 bed / 1 bath
8
Great
Overall score
Location
Amenities
Management
Value
Social
Safety

Optima Views Review

Great Location, Love the Unit, Quieter Building

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  • Couple
  • 2 beds / 2 baths

The Neighborhood

Signature Spots

dining 29 Recs

Buffalo Joe’s
Bat 17
Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza
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grocery 2 Recs

Whole Foods Market
Trader Joe’s
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convenience 2 Recs

Walgreens
7-Eleven
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fitness 36 Recs

Pure Barre
Evanston Athletic Club
TITLE Boxing Club
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parks 5 Recs

City of Evanston Recreation Divisi…
Merrick Rose Garden
Dog Beach
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coffee 14 Recs

Andy’s Frozen Custard
Bennison’s Bakery
Dream About Tea
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About Downtown Evanston

Since it's home to Northwestern, Downtown Evanston is the most popular residential area for Kellogg students. Most apartment buildings in Downtown Evanston are a 20 minute walk from the Donald P. Jacobs Center, and several public transport options can cut that commute even further. This safe and hig...
Walkable
Easy Commute
Great Location
Student Friendly
Social Community
Great Accessibility
Proximity To Amenities
Median rents in Downtown Evanston
Studio
$
1,650
1 Bedroom
$
2,100
2 Bedroom
$
2,150

Getting around Downtown Evanston


Parking at Optima Views

Parking Garage

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Parking Near Optima Views

Parking rates are for informational purposes only and may vary — for most up to date pricing, please reach out to the garage directly.

Downtown Evanston Reviews

546 reviews
Downtown Evanston has everything you need. E2 is walkable to campus, a Target, and plenty of restaurants, as well as Metra and L stations to get to Chicago. Right across the street is a Subway, a Thai restaurant, and a pizza place, plus there’s a 7-Eleven about a block away, so you’re very close to options if you need food in a pinch.
Perfect for grad school at Northwestern, but otherwise feels a bit suburban without a booming downtown. There are some good food/bar options, but also a handful of abandoned/empty retail locations -- I'm hoping that means new coffee shops/food venues are coming, but it doesn't look like it just yet.
All in all ideal downtown Evanston location. Very convenient for public transportation to Chicago, next door to local favorite Bennison's (love the late night smell of donuts baking), and walking distance to plenty of bars, restaurants, and stores. Once the Target goes up by Sherman Plaza and we have an alternative to Whole Foods close by this will be perfect.
McManus is located right next to Evanston downtown, so everything (restaurants, bars, groceries) is very close by. It's also right next to Northwestern campus (~15-18 minutes to Kellogg Global Hub by foot), which helps quite a lot, esp. in the winter when you'd want to keep your commute as short as possible.
There's plenty to do, but it still takes some effort to get downtown. If you want the quickest ride (metra), then you have to plan ahead and deal with the (infrequent) train schedule. The purple line only runs express during rush hour. Depending on the time of day, your commute can run 20 minutes to an hour and a half.
I would 100% live in Evanston when choosing where to live for my time at Kellogg. There are plenty of amenities of all sorts - everything from two (!) Whole Foods and a Trader Joe's to amazing restaurants (Stained Glass, Boltwood, Found) and quick joints (Freshii, Cozy, Blaze, Cheesie's, etc.) to good bars ranging from dive-y (Bat 17) to more upscale (Bangers & Lace) to great retail, workout options (barre, boxing, and regular gyms), salons, and handy storefronts like hardware, cleaners, etc. Feels like home very quickly!
I live just south of the main downtown area, and it's the perfect intersection of being close to the action but also a bit removed when you want some quiet. I like being a in a more residential pocket, so there is slightly less foot traffic and really nice areas to walk around with a dog, etc.
We're one block from the centre of downtown Evanston. Clearly Evanston isn't going to win any awards for nightlife, culture or dynamism. But, you're not going to get than anywhere near campus. Good news is you're 2 blocks from Davis, which gets you to downtown Chicago in 30 mins.

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