It never really occurs to us (or to me, anyway) that the old New York businesses we prize are naturally housed in old buildings—buildings which may not have been kept up over the years they way they ought. But recent crumblings at Chumley's, Ward's Bakery and other edifices have driven the point home, and made me wonder what other addresses may be in iminent danger.
Banking a corner near Bloomingdale's the other day, I spotted a likely future victim of age and gravity. The Subway Inn, time-honored den of beer and darkness, takes up the ground-floor space of what must be one of the sorrier-looking structures in Manhattan. Putting aside the fact that the townhouse is in serious need of a bath, the floors above the bar are a wreck. The stonework is chipped and broken, the iron railing is bent and crooked, and every line that ought to run straight slants. It's a disgrace; a building just begging for a headline and a comdemned sign.
I don't know who owns the building, the owner of the Subway Inn or someone else, but if you're reading this: please, sir, pick up a phone and call a contractor.
There is a rumor that the building has been sold, but the owner of the bar has an agreement where they won't close the bar until he dies. The owner of the bar is in his 90s.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea if this is true. However, given its location, Subway Inn is the leading candidate on the replaced by a Starbucks/ Duane Reade/ Chase Bank list. Ironically, its clientele seems to have gotten even divier of late.
Oh, my God, that's depressing. How much longer can he live? I will have to investigate.
ReplyDeleteOne has an excellent vantage point from which to stand and contemplate this fine structure if one hangs out across the street in the roomy 60th Street entranceway to the N/R/4/5/6 lines (and Bloomie's Metro level).
ReplyDeleteHead downstairs, grab a fro-yo from Bloomie's 40 Carrots, pop back upstairs, plant yourself in the entranceway, and marvel at the treacherously sagging Subway Inn as you spoon up your delicious frozen treat. It's 10 minutes and 5 bucks well spent.