Meet the Residents
Brooke Avila
Simple pleasures. Brooke Avila has discovered an abundance of them since moving into her loft in downtown Des Moines. Getting to sleep in later and walking to her job at Meredith is one of her favorites. While her co-workers are waking up early and battling rush hour traffic, Brooke is buying her morning coffee and enjoying a leisurely walk to work, even during the winter.
In fact, the hassles of rush hour traffic are what led to Brooke’s decision to make downtown Des Moines her home. Commuting from her former home in Waukee took 20 to 30 minutes or even longer with the construction on I-235. Now, she rarely uses her car – buying about one tank of gas each month. She appreciates driving more now that she’s not chained to her car and she giggled when explaining that when she does use it “It’s like going for a Sunday drive”.
Brooke absolutely adores her loft. Being one of the first in her building allowed her to make some design choices to better suit her lifestyle. She appreciated the fact that she got to be part of the construction process and was able to make some important decisions concerning the layout of her loft. Other perks, like a 10-year tax abatement, helped to assure Brooke that she had made the right decision.
One of the simplest pleasures for Brooke is the garbage shoot in her building. Instead of having to wait for ‘trash day’, she can dispose of her trash anytime she wants. Not having to do other mundane tasks like mowing the lawn or shoveling snow has given Brooke more free time, which she fills by working out at Gym F/X and serving as the Social Chair for the Downtown Neighborhood Association.
Brooke and her friends love to take advantage of the variety of entertainment options that downtown has to offer. They usually start at her loft and then walk to their favorite hang-outs like The Liar’s Club, Azaleas and Zen. She says she feels very safe walking around downtown at night because there are so many people out enjoying the night life.
She also enjoys being so close to the Downtown Farmers’ Market during the summer. “On weekends, it’s nice to hear the hustle and bustle of the street,” Brooke says. “It makes you want to get up and join the world and see what’s happening out there.”
Brooke has found that whether you want to sleep in a little longer before work, save money on gas and property taxes, or just toss your trash down a garbage shoot whenever you want - living in downtown Des Moines has many simple pleasures to offer.
