Category Archives: Downtown Pittsburgh Apartments

Giant Eagle CEO Laura Karet on company’s prospects: ‘We have big aspirations to grow’

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Laura Shapira Karet, chair and CEO of Giant Eagle, at VisionPittsburgh at the Duquesne Club.

In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic years, Laura Karet sounds fully confident about the prospects for Giant Eagle today.

“We have big aspirations to grow,” said Karet, who spoke Tuesday before a sold-out audience at a VisionPittsburgh luncheon at the Duquesne Club downtown.

Amid an ever-crowding competitive climate in which everyone from Aldi to Amazon.com Inc. is selling groceries, Karet spoke as the CEO and chairwoman of a retailer that has grown to more than 470 stores and annual revenue of $11.1 billion for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022.

In a fireside chat led by Pittsburgh Business Times Publisher Evan Rosenberg, Karet talked about Giant Eagle’s origins. The company was started by five families during the Great Depression and its ownership continues on today in a retail industry often dominated by publicly traded national chains.

Karet’s story of Giant Eagle’s ongoing growth and expansion came in two distinct parts, the first fueled by petroleum sales and the company’s decision to diversify its store types, the second by the pandemic.

“Twenty-five years ago, we realized customers were starting to change their shopping habits,” she said.

She recalled how about 20 years ago Kroger, the Cincinnati-based grocery chain that doesn’t operate in the region, started putting gas pumps in their parking lots and how quickly Giant Eagle decided to do so as well.

The result soon led to the launch of the company’s GetGo convenience store chain.

Karet recalled how quickly establishing gas pumps at Giant Eagle stores as well as for the new GetGo locations resulted in major boosts in sales for everything else.

“We started buying gas pumps as fast as we could,” she said.

She added GetGo is now differentiated by its approach to food, noting there are now more GetGo locations than there are traditional Giant Eagle stores for what’s become a major growth vehicle for the company.

Giant Eagle also was able to benefit from the major societal disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, a global health crisis in which the grocery chain operated as one of the few places people were allowed to shop amid the wave of government-required shutdowns.

“When Covid happened, our business grew enormously overnight,” she said, adding Giant Eagle quickly worked to roll out an online delivery service that had been in the works.

That was as much of a challenge as an opportunity.

With GetGo expanding and the company also rolling out more and more Market District-branded stores, including in smaller formats, Karet sounded as though Giant Eagle has carved out a sustainable niche and territory for itself.

That’s despite sometimes jarring industry consolidation.

“When Amazon bought Whole Foods, it was like a bomb went off in the industry,” she said at one point.

Yet Karet doesn’t expect any changes to the competitive landscape to come any time soon from the proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons. Roughly handicapping it as a 50/50 proposition to go forward, Karet expects such a merger to take years to fully pull off and integrate.

“We’re pretty big but really small compared to them,” she said of the two chain grocers.

She sees lots of opportunity for Giant Eagle to grow and expand as it becomes more difficult for smaller operators to compete.

“There’s too many opportunities, which, by the way is a good problem to have,” she said.

Karet noted how the company is active in converting established Giant Eagle stores into Market District stores, establishing new smaller-format Market District locations, as well as expanding its WetGo car wash business along with GetGo as a now proven store model.

“We’re pretty convinced we have a unique model that will allow us to compete in this hard changing world against people who are much bigger than us,” she said.

Karet recalled her early days in her career when she said she had “no interest in coming back to the company,” wishing instead to chart her own course, working early in her career for such companies as Procter & Gamble and Sara Lee.

Now, after taking on the title of chairwoman at Giant Eagle last year, Karet expects she’s worked in just about every position at the company, outside a few, such as chief information office and in the real estate department.

However, none of them equaled the kind of grounding she received actually working in the stores.

“The best training by far was working in the stores growing up,” she said.

Article from Pittsburgh Business Times: https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2023/03/14/laura-karet-giant-eagle-vision-pittsburgh.html

Joseph DiSanto, Ambassador of the Star Lofts Pittsburgh, with Laura Karet, CEO of Giant Eagle

Many exciting things happening in Downtown Pittsburgh at your Star Lofts Pittsburgh home next to the Benedum Theater. http://www.starloftspgh.com

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

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A Classic Christmas Story

Is there anyone who doesn’t love Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol? The story is filled with the holiday spirit – and hauntings and redemption and celebration and forgiveness. There isn’t much to dislike.

A Christmas Carol Summary

A mean-spirited, miserly old man named Ebenezer Scrooge sits in his counting-house on a frigid Christmas Eve. His clerk, Bob Cratchit, shivers in the anteroom because Scrooge refuses to spend money on heating coals for a fire. Scrooge’s nephew, Fred, pays his uncle a visit and invites him to his annual Christmas party. Two portly gentlemen also drop by and ask Scrooge for a contribution to their charity. Scrooge reacts to the holiday visitors with bitterness and venom, spitting out an angry “Bah! Humbug!” in response to his nephew’s “Merry Christmas!”

Later that evening, after returning to his dark, cold apartment, Scrooge receives a chilling visitation from the ghost of his dead partner, Jacob Marley. Marley, looking haggard and pallid, relates his unfortunate story. As punishment for his greedy and self-serving life his spirit has been condemned to wander the Earth weighted down with heavy chains. Marley hopes to save Scrooge from sharing the same fate. Marley informs Scrooge that three spirits will visit him during each of the next three nights. After the wraith disappears, Scrooge collapses into a deep sleep.

He wakes moments before the arrival of the Ghost of Christmas Past, a strange childlike phantom with a brightly glowing head. The spirit escorts Scrooge on a journey into the past to previous Christmases from the curmudgeon’s earlier years. Invisible to those he watches, Scrooge revisits his childhood school days, his apprenticeship with a jolly merchant named Fezziwig, and his engagement to Belle, a woman who leaves Scrooge because his lust for money eclipses his ability to love another. Scrooge, deeply moved, sheds tears of regret before the phantom returns him to his bed.

The Ghost of Christmas Present, a majestic giant clad in a green fur robe, takes Scrooge through London to unveil Christmas as it will happen that year. Scrooge watches the large, bustling Cratchit family prepare a miniature feast in its meager home. He discovers Bob Cratchit’s crippled son, Tiny Tim, a courageous boy whose kindness and humility warms Scrooge’s heart. The specter then zips Scrooge to his nephew’s to witness the Christmas party. Scrooge finds the jovial gathering delightful and pleads with the spirit to stay until the very end of the festivities. As the day passes, the spirit ages, becoming noticeably older. Toward the end of the day, he shows Scrooge two starved children, Ignorance and Want, living under his coat. He vanishes instantly as Scrooge notices a dark, hooded figure coming toward him.

The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come leads Scrooge through a sequence of mysterious scenes relating to an unnamed man’s recent death. Scrooge sees businessmen discussing the dead man’s riches, some vagabonds trading his personal effects for cash, and a poor couple expressing relief at the death of their unforgiving creditor. Scrooge, anxious to learn the lesson of his latest visitor, begs to know the name of the dead man. After pleading with the ghost, Scrooge finds himself in a churchyard, the spirit pointing to a grave. Scrooge looks at the headstone and is shocked to read his own name. He desperately implores the spirit to alter his fate, promising to renounce his insensitive, avaricious ways and to honor Christmas with all his heart. Whoosh! He suddenly finds himself safely tucked in his bed.

Overwhelmed with joy by the chance to redeem himself and grateful that he has been returned to Christmas Day, Scrooge rushes out onto the street hoping to share his newfound Christmas spirit. He sends a giant Christmas turkey to the Cratchit house and attends Fred’s party, to the stifled surprise of the other guests. As the years go by, he holds true to his promise and honors Christmas with all his heart: he treats Tiny Tim as if he were his own child, provides lavish gifts for the poor, and treats his fellow human beings with kindness, generosity, and warmth.

Go see the live Christmas Carol near your home at the http://www.StarLoftsPgh.com It usually plays at the Byham Theater a block from your home at the starloftspgh. See you there, Merry Christmas from Janet and Charlie.

5 simple ways to appoint you’re apartment.

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As intimidating to see an empty apartment and not know what to fill it with. Thankfully, there’s a simple decorating style that requires far less furniture and decorations than other styles, and it’s trending too! This style is minimalism, of course, so read on below for five great minimalist decor ideas for your first apartment.

Functional decor

One important principle that can guide your minimalist decor journey is knowing that your decorations can be functional pieces. Having decorations for the sake of decorations isn’t always necessary – you can often make your apartment look fantastic by tastefully arranging the functional items you use on an everyday basis.

Multi-purpose furniture

A great way to minimize clutter in your apartment is to invest in things that serve more than one function, and multi-purpose furniture can be a perfect choice. When shopping for a couch, ottoman, or sitting chair, look for an option that can be opened up to provide extra storage.

If you live in a small studio apartment and you want to minimize even further, consider buying a Murphy bed. By combining your bed and a table, two of the largest floor-space items in an apartment, you can simplify your surroundings and save a significant amount of space.

Floating shelves

Whatever your style of minimalist decor is, floating shelves are a must-have for displaying decorations and other items in a simple and practical way. Whether in the kitchen, living room, bathroom, or bedroom, a floating shelf feels refined where a regular shelf could feel like it just takes up wall space.

Simple wall art and mirrors

Minimalism doesn’t just mean simply removing everything unnecessary from your living space, and it’s still good to have interesting art and decor to make your apartment feel comfortable. Simple wall art can add a unique element to your apartment, especially when tastefully color-coordinated with your other pieces.

Alternatively, mirrors are another great apartment wall fixture that can add depth and light to your apartment. Too much wall art can feel cluttered, but large, simple mirrors can make the apartment feel more spacious. 

Neutral colors with an accent color

Many aspiring minimalists have a hard time knowing how to decorate in a simple way, and color is one of the most difficult aspects to grasp at first. Putting together a color palette can be tricky if you haven’t done it before, so here’s an easy way to get started.

Choose an accent color to use for your color palette. It’s helpful to use a color that you already have furniture or decorations in, but you can purchase items later to supplement this. Then, simply choose two to four neutral colors that go together well with your accent. Consider tinting everything the same for a monochromatic look, like a deep blue accent color with bluish-gray neutrals. You can also try to balance the color scheme by pairing a warm accent color with cool neutrals or vice versa.

Have fun at http://www.starloftspgh.com

Pittsburgh, top U.S. city to live.

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The 2022-23 list, released Tuesday, ranked 150 U.S. metro areas using indexes for jobs, housing affordability, quality of life, desirability, and net migration to calculate each city’s standing. U.S. News gathers data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Labor, and its own internal sources. Pittsburgh is a great place to live. You can call Pittsburgh your home at http://www.starloftspgh.com.

Call 412.943.7660 for a tour of http://www.skyloftpgh.com available May 2022.

Frozen, The Broadway Musical comes to your home

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Great news, Frozen, the musical is coming to the Benedum Theater, right across the street from you home. The schedule for this is October 5-16, 2022.

Be sure to get your tickets. This will be a record-breaking season for the Pittsburgh Broadway season 2022-2023!

Here is plot of the musical Frozen:

Plot

Act I

A Greek chorus introduces Princess Elsa of Arendelle and her playful younger sister, Princess Anna (“Vuelie”, “Let the Sun Shine On”).[41] While the family knows about Elsa’s magic, it is kept a secret from the people of Arendelle. One night at bedtime, Elsa and Anna build a magical snowman and name it Olaf (“A Little Bit of You”); Elsa creates snow in their room. In their excitement, Elsa accidentally injures Anna with her icy magic. Their parents, King Agnarr and Queen Iduna, call for the aid of the colony of hidden folk, led by Grand Pabbie. He heals Anna and removes her memories of Elsa’s magic. Elsa asks Grand Pabbie to remove her magic, but he says that it is a part of her. He gives her a vision of her future, frightening Elsa, who believes that her magic will cause death. The King isolates the sisters within the castle. Elsa shuts Anna out when Anna seeks to play (“Do You Want to Build a Snowman?“), and Elsa’s fear of her powers grows. While the princesses are still young, the Queen and King sail to seek a solution to help Elsa control her powers, and they die at sea during a storm.

Years pass. The day before Elsa’s coronation as Queen of Arendelle, Anna asks if there is anything she can do for her sister. Elsa, her room coated in ice, refuses to open her door out of fear of hurting Anna again. Anna is excited for the castle’s gates to open (“For the First Time in Forever“) and meets the handsome Prince Hans (“Hans of the Southern Isles”). Elsa is terrified that the kingdom’s citizens might find out about her powers and fear her, while wishing to be able to reconnect with Anna (“Dangerous to Dream”). Elsa’s coronation goes smoothly, and she initiates her first contact with Anna in years. They enjoy the coronation together, with Anna talking the Duke of Weselton out of dancing with the newly crowned Queen. However, Elsa leaves after Anna asks about keeping the gates open. Anna falls in love with Hans (“Love Is an Open Door“), who quickly proposes marriage to her, and the two share a kiss after she accepts. The couple asks for Elsa’s blessing, who objects because the two have only known each other for a day. After intense questioning from Anna about shutting her out of her life, Elsa accidentally unleashes her powers before the court. The Duke brands her a monster. Elsa flees to the North Mountain without realizing that her suppressed magic has engulfed Arendelle in an eternal winter.

Anna goes in search of Elsa, leaving Hans in charge of the kingdom during her absence. Up in the mountains, ice harvester Kristoff and his reindeer Sven (“Reindeer(s) Are Better Than People“) are found by the ill-equipped Anna, still in her coronation dress. She orders Kristoff to take her to the North Mountain, the source of the storm. Kristoff gives her a set of winter clothes, and she leaves her dress behind. In view of her sudden engagement, Kristoff and Anna disagree about love as they cross a bridge (“What Do You Know About Love”), and Anna saves Kristoff from falling off the bridge. Anna and Kristoff then encounter a newly created Olaf, who offers to guide them to Elsa and sings about his love for summer (“In Summer“). A soldier arrives in Arendelle with Anna’s dress, and Hans fears for Anna’s safety. He assembles a search party (“Hans of the Southern Isles” (reprise)), including the Duke and two of his men, who intend to put her in her place. Meanwhile, on the North Mountain, Elsa builds an ice castle with her powers and transforms her coronation dress into a sparkly ice gown (“Let It Go“).

Act II

Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf arrive at Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post & Sauna to meet the owner, Oaken (“Hygge”). Anna enjoys the sauna together with its many other patrons. Kristoff convinces Oaken and his patrons to aid their journey; Oaken gives them provisions and a winter dress for Anna.

Reaching the ice palace, Anna meets Elsa, but when she reveals what has become of Arendelle, Elsa becomes angry and frustrated, saying that she cannot fix it, and she accidentally freezes Anna’s heart (“I Can’t Lose You”). Out of fear of hurting Anna further, Elsa forces her, Kristoff, Sven, and Olaf out of the palace. Anna’s hair begins turning white, so Kristoff takes her to meet the hidden folk, his adoptive family, who recognize Anna as the princess and attempt to match her with Kristoff, despite him mentioning her betrothal to Hans (“Fixer Upper“). Grand Pabbie attempts to remove the magic freezing Anna’s heart but fails; Kristoff realizes that he is falling in love with her (“Kristoff Lullaby”). Grand Pabbie reveals that Anna will freeze solid unless “an act of true love” reverses the spell. Kristoff selflessly races Anna back home so Hans can give her true love’s kiss.

In the ice castle, Elsa considers whether she is a monster and wonders how can she end the storm, unsure whether the storm would end or grow worse if she were to die (“Monster“). She resolves to stay alive to end the storm and lowers the defenses around the castle, allowing Hans and his men to capture her. Home, Anna is delivered to Hans, but rather than kissing her, he reveals that he has been plotting to seize the throne of Arendelle by allowing Anna to freeze to death and accusing Elsa of her murder (“Hans of the Southern Isles” (reprise 2)). Hans locks Anna in a room to die, as Anna reflects on her mistakes while still holding on to the idea of love (“True Love”). Olaf frees Anna, and they venture into the blizzard outside to meet Kristoff, whom Olaf reveals is in love with her.

Hans publicly charges Elsa with treason and sentences her to death. Elsa escapes her chains and flees outside as a blizzard grows (“Colder by the Minute”). Kristoff and Anna struggle to find each other. Hans confronts Elsa, claiming that she killed Anna, causing Elsa to break down and the storm to pause. Anna finally finds Kristoff but spots Hans about to kill Elsa; she leaps in the way and freezes solid, stopping Hans. Devastated, Elsa mourns her sister, who thaws out, her sacrifice constituting “an act of true love”. Realizing that her magic is controlled by love, Elsa ends the winter (“Vuelie (Love Thaws)”). Anna punches Hans, and she and Kristoff become a couple, with Elsa’s blessing. Elsa and Anna reunite without fear for the first time, as their parents, young Elsa and young Anna appear in the background, signaling the healing of the sisters’ painful past (Finale).

Warm Regards, Janet and Charlie

How to make your StarLoftPgh look like an art gallery.

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Turning your apartment into a fabulous art gallery is one of the best ways to style your place. You can fashion your space into a show-stopper with genuine, gallery-quality pieces or by creatively framing and positioning affordable reproductions, prints, and posters. While you get the artwork, remember that galleries are often minimalist settings, so decluttering your home will be part of your efforts.

When conversation starters drape your walls, there’ll be no more awkward dinner parties with icy interactions. With the decor tips we will share in this article, every room in your apartment will deliver color and pizzaz. Switch out the gloom and dreariness for daily immersion in art.

Transforming your starloftpgh into a never-ending exhibition implies that you focus less on furniture and more on your art pieces. The process will challenge your eye for detail and your ability to put together cohesive designs. Here is some ideas, so let’s get into it.

Opt for White or Neutral-Colored Walls

The appearance of your home is mainly determined by the walls. With simple white or neutral walls, your rooms appear larger, broader and have a more minimalistic ambiance. You’ll be able to experiment with a wide range of artwork as a result of this. Compared to crowded patterns or harsh tones, the colors and designs on the walls shine out better against a plain background.

You should think about the statement that a particular shade of white sends before choosing a can of paint. A white with somewhat warm undertones is fantastic for home decor. Too bright a white makes a place appear unwelcoming as if you’re entering into a grocery store or a hospital.

The starloftspgh uses the neutral oyster bar as the wall colors, and is very clean and appealing to almost everyone.

Set Your Space Apart With Sculptural Art

Sculptural pieces elevate the space above knick-knacks. Install large, stand-alone works on a pedestal to grab attention when anyone walks into the room. If you prefer, you can display smaller sculptures in groups of three or five. Lighting also has a role to play as illumination can highlight the details of your pieces. With a wall mirror behind the sculptures, you can also add depth and dimension.

Remember to keep delicate sculptures away from areas with high foot traffic to avoid accidents.

Drape the Walls With Art

Unless you’re an art curator, artist, or gallery owner, buying art isn’t something that comes easily to everyone. However, following a few straightforward criteria can make you realize that selecting art for the house is far more natural than one may expect. Though certain principles, such as investing in neutral sofas or carpeting, may be followed, utilize your wall art to make more eclectic selections. Express yourself through colors, content, and texture that speak to you.

Infuse Classic Designs

Pick an odd number of pieces with which you can arrange uniquely and artistically. Regardless of the total number on display, odd numbers often look better than their even counterparts. For a cohesive atmosphere, follow a color scheme, e.g., black, gold, and violet prints or paintings. Envision a layout and place your pieces on the floor before you hang them up.

Lit Up the Space

You can add a whole new way of looking at your space with smart lighting. The tricks of lighting are endless, whether it’s using light to accentuate your wall hangings or frames, choosing the appropriate lights source for an antique table, or installing faint yellow lights in a fake ceiling. The starloftspgh have enough controllable lighting to make this possible for you. You can also use lights to concentrate attention on certain places. You may also use fairy lights to create a relaxing atmosphere in a room.

Where to Get Art Pieces for Your Apartment

Pittsburghers like their art, particularly in the Culural district where local artists display, and sell their artworks. Empty walls can leave you feeling quite gloomy staring at those lifeless walls, particularly in the winter months. 

You can avoid this by using your some of your budget to make smart purchases to transform your house into an art gallery. You can get great works at pocket-friendly prices from the following locations:

Artsy

If you seek fine art from New York or international galleries, then you should check out Artsy. Some curators may chide you for buying art you did not appreciate in person, but it’s 2021, and e-commerce is the norm. Artsy sells works in all styles, showcasing artists like Jean Dubuffet, Damien Hirst, and much more. Though these do not qualify as cheap art, they host live auctions, display sales from international fairs, and give emerging artists a platform. 

Society6

Society6 carries artworks from hundreds of thousands of artists all over the globe. Their inventory displays creative works from international artists and designers who supply their original works to the company. Society6 then reprints them with high-quality materials, which makes them more affordable for you.

From wall art to tapestries, you can get them delivered right to your door. The artists are fairly compensated for their works by receiving the majority of the sale proceeds. 

Art School Exhibitions

Though you may wish for a Picasso or Basquiat, those may be unrealistic at the moment. In the meantime, why not stop by a college exhibition to support new acts? College students are taught the techniques of these masters and infuse their ingenuity in creating pieces that may one day be renowned. While their works may have not yet graced the walls of a top museum or gallery, this just translates to you having a genuine original.

Local Pittsburgh Artists

Live Downtown Pittsburgh

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If you’re relocating for work, opt for downtown living in an elegant apartment. Downtown is a great, central location with tons of entertainment, walkability, and access to the trolly. Enjoy the cultural, and sports events on the weekends, a bustling development with 100+ restaurants and bars! Downtown is a great place to be for those who enjoy high-energy environments and don’t mind a little noise and traffic.

Call Janet for a tour of the Penthouse @ the http://www.starloftspgh.com

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Downtown Pittsburgh Listing Deal You Will Want to Check Out in December

For many of us, it’s hard to pass up an opportunity to live in Downtown Pittsburgh, especially when you find an amazing deal. This is what RentHop likes to refer to internally as gems. Thanks to years of accumulated rental data, we have some of the most affordable and quality rental listings the Downtown Pittsburgh has to offer. Our inventory of listings has grown exponentially over the years, this of one our favorite deals for rental listings.

The phenomenon of low supply/inventory of available listings continues into the month of December though demand has started to wane due to seasonality and the introduction of the new Omicron coronavirus variant. As a result, rental concessions being offered by StarLoftsPgh.com are remaining steady at pre pandemic rates (on average one month free) with some buildings not even offering any. Thankfully, RentHop is still getting a great inventory of gems. Today we’ll focus on some of our favorite deals in downtown Pittsburgh this coming December!

Please see more information for this gem http://www.starloftspgh.com