Le Tournesol Apartments

Location

2640 Portage Bay East

(West Davis, just beyond the intersection of Russell Blvd. & Arlington Blvd.)

Office Hours

Mon-Fri 9:00am-5:00pm (usually closed for an hour or so around lunch time)

Sat by appointment

Management

Sherri Vivas

Jon Berkley Management, Inc.

Contact

(530)758-2462

Website

http://davisrentalhotline.com/index.asph?F=Detail&ID=10087

Features

Gas wall heater and room air conditioners

Whole-house fan

Wood-burning fireplace

Ceiling fans in every room

Dishwasher/garbage disposal

Microwave

Coin-op laundry on site

Patios/yards

Cats allowed with deposit

Pool/spa

Greenhouse/sunroom

Cable access

Instaconnect for a fee

Storage units (additional fee)

Le Tournesol offers two- and three-bedroom townhouse apartments ranging from $1,350/month to $1,850/month with security deposits of $500 to $700 [Feb 2008]. Some pets are allowed for an additional deposit. The complex is located on Unitrans D bus line and K bus line. The nearest stop is Russell Blvd. at Arlington Farm Apartments.

Le Tournesol is home to a diverse group of people: undergraduates, grad students, professionals, and families. Parties are rare and the complex is generally pretty quiet. The walls between apartments are fairly well insulated, so you won't hear your neighbors too much unless they have pounding bass on their stereo. Each apartment is two stories, so you don't have neighbors above or below you. The walls within the apartments are fairly thin, so don't talk about your roommates too loudly!

These two floorplans are approximate in scale, but provide the general idea as to the layout. Half of the apartments have a mirrored floorplan from the ones shown.
2 bedroom, 1.5 bath. Approx. 950 sq ft. 3 bedroom, 2 bath. Approx 1200 sq ft.

Photos

Exterior of 2 bedroom units. (Photo provided by management)

Exterior of 3 bedroom units. (Photo provided by management)

Energy Conservation

Le Tournesol was designed with energy conservation in mind (from a 1970s standpoint). The apartments utilize passive solar heating and cooling, which uses little gas or electricity. Additionally, the units have conventional heating and cooling systems (gas wall heater, wood stove, room air conditioners) designed to be used as "back-up."
A diagram of how the passive solar system works. A guide of how to operate the passive solar system.

During the winter, the sunroom keeps the apartment comfortable (above 70 degrees) on sunny days, even if it is cold outside (assuming your sunroom is not obstructed by a tree or another building). The sunroom, however, does little good on cloudy days or at night. During those times, you may need to use the fireplace or the gas heater. The gas heater works without electricity. It uses a pilot light and, when operating, heats by radiation. The circulation fan does not do a good job of distributing the warm air if the bedroom doors are closed (ie: your bedroom will get cold if you keep the door shut). This system does require a bit of conscientiousness on the part of the residents to work well. Neither the sunroom, fireplace, or heater work instantaneously like a forced air furnace. They generally raise the temperature at a rate of 2-3 degrees an hour.

During the summer, the air conditioning is generally only needed during the hottest part of the afternoon, although many people run it more than that. It's worth noting that only the upstairs bedrooms have air conditioners and they really only cool the room they're in, but the first floor generally doesn't get that hot. The sunroom acts as an insulation layer between the outside and the living area. Air temperatures in the sunroom will be well over 100 degrees. The need for air conditioning at night is greatly reduced by having a whole house fan. At night, if you open all the windows and turn it on, it exhausts the hot air and draws in cool air. All of the bedrooms, as well as the living and dining areas, are equipped with ceiling fans as well.

The complex has been under renovation for several years during the summers. The work should be completed by September 2008. Some community features, such as storage units, have been added, while others, such as the solar hot water system, have been removed. Individual apartments have received complete cosmetic upgrades. Originally, the living rooms had vinyl tile, which has been replaced with carpet. The apartments also had a water tank in the wall between the sunroom and living area to help absorb heat. These have been removed and replaced with windows, which hurts energy efficiency, but provides more natural light. Ceiling fans with dimmer controlled lights were added in each bedroom, the living room, and the dining room. All kitchen appliances were replaced with new Kenmore appliances and built-in microwaves were added. The tub and shower surrounds were replaced in the bathrooms, as well as the sinks, counters, and fixtures.

• Each unit has its own gas hot water heater, meaning you can easily run out of hot water if you take really long showers. But it also means that your neighbors' water usage has little effect on your showering comfort.
  

• The electrical system is not new. The entire upstairs of each unit is serviced by a single 15 amp breaker and the downstairs living area is serviced by one 15 amp breaker. (The kitchen has several circuits for appliances). Needless to say, you have to be careful about how many high-wattage items you operate at once (ie: hairdryers, computers, tvs, space heaters, etc.)
  

• Every unit has a patio, but the units along Russell Blvd. have private back yards. It is the responsibility of each resident to keep their yard in decent shape (this is considered part of your unit and the landscaping crews will not enter your gate). Some people have a garden or some minimal landscaping, which makes it a pleasant space. Some people let the weeds become a fire hazard, which results in general unhappiness.
  

• The manager lives on site and is generally very pleasant. She knows most of the residents by name. However, she single-handedly runs the office, so the office is closed when she has to go to meetings or run to the bank.
  

• This complex follows the Davis Model Lease and adds a few common sense addendums, such as agreeing not to climb on the roof. The only significant change is that you get 1.5% interest on your deposit instead of 5%, but that seems to be a fairly common practice in Davis.

For more information on rental housing in Davis, take a look at our Housing Guide as well as our Apartments pages.

Comments:

Note: You must be logged in to add comments

2005-09-07 17:31:15   This place is pretty nice, for an older complex. It's quite affordable but the bedrooms are a bit small. The sunrooms are lovely. Parking is a big problem here, as the spaces are striped so small that my VW Beetle wouldn't fit in them (!!), so people park every other spot and waste a lot of space. —JoannaHeiple

2007-05-15 11:30:02   When we first moved here it was a pretty nice place to be. Now not so much. We've had lots of things break, the laundry facilities are WAY outdated (there are only 4 washers & 5 dryers for the entire complex - when they are even working). The parking is LITTLE to be desired, considering there are many 3 bd units w/multiple residents there's not enough parking to accomadate everyone. We've had to park on the street and even over at the next complex across the street. The parking lot's painted stripes have worn away so aparently w/out those little lines no one knows how to park straight. The mgmt (as sweet as she seems) will tell you what you want to hear. Don't do anything or agree to anything until she writes it down!! The trees ooze some sort of sap. For the price I would expect an exercise room. On the upside, the grounds have been kept nice. We've never had any issues w/vandelism or crime. The mail is delivered early in the day & they have those little boxes for when you get a pkg. —PinkLadie

2007-10-17 08:44:49   I lived here in 04/05, and boy do I have a story to tell. The complex itself is nice enough, the space is huge and comfortable. My downstairs roommate had a serious problem with these weird bugs that appeared in the night, but she was kind of a freak to begin with, so there's a chance a lot of the panic was in her head. No, the story is with the management. They decided they needed to renovate, so during the summer, they hired construction workers to stand outside my window and hit things with hammers and play mariachi music at 7am. This was bad enough, but then they were fixing the roof. I'm lying in my (second story) bed, and all of the sudden, one of the workers steps through the roof, sending a huge chunk of plaster and a ton of debris onto my head. When I stopped shaking long enough to go to the office and complain, the lady was totally useless. Her first words were (I kid you not) "I'd give you a hug, because you look like you need a hug, but I'm not the hugging sort." i was like, thanks for that, then... I had already found a new apartment for the next year, and I told her I was moving out over the weekend, and that they were going to pay for somewhere else for me to live, because this was intolerable. Yeah, a month and a half later, I got half a month's worth of a third of the rent. No apology, nothing. Someone needs to drop a house on that office witch... —SarahCaves

2007-11-20 14:48:54   I really enjoy living here. It is quiet, pretty and I have all "GOOD" things to say about the manager and maintenance guy. They are really nice.My apartment is brand new (remodeled this year)I am so glad I signed a lease here. —mysticalone

2007-12-10 00:22:34   I have to say, I love Le Tournesol. We've been here for two years and it's great! Management is very nice and always considerate. The Apartment looks amazing after the remodel. We would stay, but my roommate is getting married and I needed to find a smaller apartment. —CassieH

2008-02-06 12:46:26   I live at Le Tournesol. In Fall of 05 there was a change of management as well as maintenance. You may have noticed some of the comments here are rather old.I have to say the complex is very quiet,pretty, and the complex is small and the neighborhood is safe. People are very friendly. The parking lot will be repaved and lined this summer. The manager and maintenance staff really care about the property. Please stop by and see for yourself. Sherri Vivas (Le Tournesol Manager) —Sherri

2008-02-18 18:15:56   My only real complaint is the parking lot. The lines are almost completely deteriorated, which means double parking, wasted spaces, and people parking too close to you are constant issues. Also, the trees in the parking lot are super sappy: much worse than anywhere else in town. There are only about 3 spots in the whole parking lot where you don't have to worry about sap.

The best thing about Le Tournesol is the management. Sherri is extremely, extremely nice. She's always very friendly and was very fair and helfpul any time anything came up.

The units themselves are fair. Before both upstairs bedrooms had AC the heat up there was unbearable, but that shouldn't be an issue any more. It's kind of ridiculous and a waste of space to have a wood-burning stove in a Davis apartment, too. Overall it's a pretty good place. —AlexPerkins

2008-07-10 20:36:27   I have only good things to say about Le Tournesol. The manager is very nice, the maintenance is very prompt and always gets the job done. It is very quiet and has a lot of trees that keeps it cool during the summer. It is a mile or so from campus and Safeway which is very convenient. I never hear my neighbors because of the fact that they are town homes. There is a pool and Spa and it's always in good shape. I would stay longer but I graduated this year. I highly recommend Le Tournesol. —JohnnyAustin

2008-07-10 21:00:06   I moved into Le Tournesol about the same time Sherri became manager and she is absolutely amazing! From what I hear about the old manager I'm glad I didn't come sooner. I've never been hesitant to talk to Sherri or come to her with my needs, as well as Steve, the maintenance guy. The complex offers a quiet, peaceful environment and is in a great location next to the U Mall and the UCD campus. One of my favorite things about this little town home community is that its conveniently located as well conveniently low key unlike most places located so close to campus. I'm so sad to be moving out and leave such an amazing place, but I know whoever is to replace me will be extremely happy, especially with all the great remodels! =] —Missyhob

2008-07-19 20:55:38   Just so you know, "Missyhob" is my girlfriend and we both commented on my computer. That's why it says we are the same person haha. —JohnnyAustin

2008-09-22 16:56:21   Hi this is Sherri the manager of Le Tournesol.

Just an update. We will be repaving and lining the parking lot on Wed. the 24th of Sept. 08. We are now at the end of the 3 year renovation project.

The complex has undergone some major changes.
Please feel free to stop by and take a look!
I also want to thank all of my residents for making my job such a pleasure.
Good luck to all of you this year. —sherrilynn5

2009-03-02 16:14:15   Le Tournesol has just a few 3 bedrooms left. Stop by anytime for a tour of the model. All renovations are complete now. If you are looking for a clean, spacious, apartment/town home in a quiet, safe neighborhood, this might be just what you have been looking for. Looking forward to welcoming you to our home!

Sherri V
Manager —sherrilynn5