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The hotel's resident manager will walk your dog, do laundry and even bake homemade cookies for your children—and with real flair at the landmark 58-room Steinhart, the fifth boutique hotel acquired and operated by Personality Hotels on Union Square.

"With both business and leisure travel trips being 13.5 percent longer than 1992, we felt a real need to cater to this extended stay market, " said Yvonne Lembi-Detert, President of Personality Hotels on Union Square who manages the Steinhart which requires that guests stay minimum of 30 days.

The kid- and pet-friendly boutique hotel has taken the term "corporate lodging" to a new level by offering all the comforts of home to its extended stay guests. Long-term guests indulge in the pleasure of knowing that there is a 24-hour resident manager, a personal concierge who arranges for dinner reservations, theater tickets, babysitting, weekly laundry and maid service and mail delivery, all included in the monthly fee.

For a nominal fee, managers at the Steinhart will also arrange for grocery delivery and personal banking. Personal trainers and spa treatments can also be arranged. Guests also enjoy local phone calls, fax service, daily newspapers and nearby parking. Stately residential apartments boast city views, modern fully-equipped kitchens, remote-control color televisions, VCR's and stereos, and complete work area with dataports for personal computer hook-up. For high speed internet access, DSL lines are available in each apartment.

Arriving in California in 1873, Ignatz Steinhart worked successfully in the banking industry and enjoyed an active civic life, making many contributions to San Francisco and California culture. Steinhart's most well known contribution is his gift of the Steinhart Aquarium to the California Academy of Sciences in honor of his brother, Sigmund. The papers completing that gift was signed in the Steinhart living room of apartment 101.

The Steinhart was built on the lot that had previously held his original frame house. Completed in 1910, apartments were designed to resemble his earlier home, complete with living room, dining room, master bedroom, bath, and kitchen with servant quarters. Ignatz Steinhart lived in the building until his death in 1917.

Unlike other long-term corporate housing, this boutique hotel company customized the Steinhart to reflect a contemporary residential style with a traditional turn-of-the-century edifice. A member of Historic Hotels of America, the Steinhart, re-designed by the acclaimed New York designer William Sofield of Studio Sofield, known for his design of the Soho Grand in New York and Gucci stores around the world, transformed the interior of this grand dame by using traditional materials in modern ways.

Spacious residential apartments highlight hardwood floors accented with custom wool area carpeting, sumptuous velvet draperies delicately balanced on antique brass hardware, a modern-shaped chenille tapestry sofa, Art Deco inspired lacquer and harvested mahogany armoire, a rubbed oak desk with classic Bauhaus lamp and companion dark walnut swivel office chair. Apartments, affordably priced from $1,995 monthly, range from 400 square feet to 1,000 square feet.

The architectural landmark hotel, built in 1910, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located within walking distance to both the Financial District and the chic Union Square shopping district. Studios and one-bedroom apartments particularly appeal to financial executives and visiting artists.

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