MTA Plans To Transform ‘Honest Boy’ Fruit Stand Into Glass, Steel Building

BY DAVID LOMBINO
Staff Reporter of the Sun

While the MTA mulls the city’s $500 million offer for development rights to the 26-acre Hudson rail yards, it is moving ahead with plans to transform a tiny fruit stand on Houston Street into a more permanent fixture.

The Landmarks Preservation Commission will hear a proposal today from the MTA and the owner of the “Honest Boy” fruit stand at the corner of Broadway and Houston Street in SoHo to allow the construction of a two-story structure of glass, steel, and wood. The fruit stand, which abuts the entrance of one of the entrances to the Broadway–Lafayette subway station, has been standing on the corner for more than a decade with the consent of the city.

The architect on the project, Tobias Guggenheimer, said he hopes the proposal will “set a precedent” for other visually striking, “high-quality retail” architecturally designed to spruce up the gritty corners and entrances of subway stations in New York.

The fruit stand’s owner, Imanol Arenas Olie, purchased the business from a friend nearly a year ago. He leases it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand. The 1,000 square feet — and leased it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand. The 1,000 square feet — has leased it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand. The 1,000 square feet — has leased it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand. The 1,000 square feet — has leased it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand. The 1,000 square feet — has leased it to Mr. Lee, who operates the fruit stand.
(As shown in the scan, the line repeats due to a printing alignment error; transcribed exactly.)

Together they hope to replace it with a project for up to the line place, according to Mr. Guggenheimer and a source at the MTA.

In the last decade, the corner has exploded with foot and vehicular traffic, packed with bars, restaurants, and hip brick facades across one of the busiest shopping corners in the city.

In the mid-1980s, SoHo’s solo transformers, community groups saved the area from Con Ed, which had planned to put a power station. In 1992, following community protests, the MTA abandoned its prior plan to use the stand to erect an electrical substation. In 2000, the agency wanted to expand the parking lot and storage facility immediately to the east, threatening to squeeze out the fruit stand.

Just more than a year ago, Mr. Arenas became ill and transferred the lease to Mr. Lee, who operates it as Honest Boy Manhattan. Mr. Arenas is said to have paid $200 a month for the site. A source with the MTA would not say how much the current tenant pays, but he said it was “not significant.”

With the neighborhood exploding with shoppers and luxury, glass-encased apartments going up, some residents and locals said they would miss the old rickety stand. The proposed construction rises 17 feet and will include a mezzanine, glass, containers at the roof level and a set of sliding glass shutters to complement the surrounding architecture. The space on the floor would be used for storage.

Mr. Guggenheimer said the SoHo project was “going absurdly,” and he hopes it will be a “good, charming, visual experience.”

It will include a coffee scene. All the code requirements have been met, according to Mr. Sweeney said in the hearing. The Community Board 2 submitted a request to the Landmarks Commission that the proposal “is acceptable” and “sensitive” enough.

Mr. Guggenheimer, the architect, said the design is meant to be a local landmark.

“The MTA explicitly encouraged a playful, expressive design. Our solution pays homage to the cast-iron buildings along Broadway by employing similar modules that have gable-like forms.”

Today, the Landmarks Commission plans to review the proposal and give an advisory report to the MTA. Because the site sits on state-owned land, it does not require the commission’s approval. A spokeswoman for the MTA would not comment on the proposal, saying it is in the review process.

The New York Sun
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2006

In SoHo, the Little Fruit Stand That Could

‘URBAN ORCHARD’ The Honest Boy fruit stand on Broadway and Houston Street, which has been saved more than once over the years, could be transformed into a more permanent structure.