Students reflect on grocery closing

Though the Giant Eagle on Craig Street and Centre Avenue closed only two weeks ago, the red… Though the Giant Eagle on Craig Street and Centre Avenue closed only two weeks ago, the red letters that spelled its name are already gone. The boarded doors and windows hide any evidence that a grocery has ever been in the brick building.

Students who regularly took advantage of the proximity of the store now find themselves having to look elsewhere.

“I don’t like that I have to drive all the way to Shadyside,” junior Jane Sanford said.

It also changed the value of her real estate.

“We’re subletting our apartment, and a grocery store across the street would have been a big selling point,” she said.

Other students were less disappointed about the loss.

“Now I have to go to the much nicer one,” senior John Voelker said.

The Giant Eagle on Centre Avenue in Shadyside recently remodeled. It is a Market Fresh store, meaning it carries specialty foods as well as standard items.

Other stores students frequent include Whole Foods, the Giant Eagle in Squirrel Hill and the East End Food Co-Op.

According to an item in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, independent owner Bill Bricker decided to close the store because it was not operating profitably. More than 45 employees were offered positions in other locations.

Georgia Petropoulos – the executive director of the Oakland Business Improvement District – feels Oakland would be a good place for a new grocery store.

“That was the primary reason we started the farmer’s market, to provide fresh produce in Oakland,” she said. “It’s been a huge success.”

Petropoulos emphasized the large number of students and workers in Oakland who wouldn’t mind walking to get their groceries. Large grocers tend to stay in the suburbs because they feel they need space for parking and they are offered cheap rent. A small, independent store may be the answer, she suggested.

“You want everyone to support small businesses,” Petropoulos said.

She encouraged students to get involved in contacting representatives in local and state government about bringing a grocer to the area.

Urban grocery stores are becoming more popular, she said, citing the success of Whole Foods as an example.

“As soon as the demand comes back, grocery stores are coming back to the urban area,” she said.