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Nosy Neighbor: Who is the man who lives full time on Reade Street?
Sonia Stock asked what we have all asked over the years: “I don’t know his name but I know this guy sleeps on what was originally a flower box on Reade Street [in the window of the former Sazon restaurant, which was there from 2009 to 2018]. He almost always has a smile. How does he do it? Does anyone know his story?”
And because she is that way, she then answered her own question. She went and spoke to him herself. I could have done the same but it’s tough interviewing people who are clearly unstable in at least a couple regards — in this case, at the very least, with unstable housing. There’s no reason to assume that what he is saying is true.
Image capture November 2024 © Google 2026
But what she learned is a glimpse into a life spent on the neighborhood’s streets for what I think is at least six years and Sonia says is 15. He spent some years on Duane and West Broadway, including in front of what was most recently Willow & Zoey; the owner of that business had to ask him to leave.
His name, he told her, is Johannes Symoure. His family is from Hungary and he has a daughter who lives in Budapest. Sonia asked him if he sees her and he said yes. He speaks very softly and uses a walker to get around — and even then, very slowly. Sonia says she has seen him in Bluestone Lane, so perhaps he uses that bathroom?
He spoke to Sonia about a lawsuit, but the story was jumbled and hard for her to connect the dots.
“He definitely is an educated man and dresses well, if that makes sense,” she said. “He cleans the area in front of his shelter every day. I call him WWM — Weather Warrior Man. He is the most resilient homeless man I have ever seen, through sweltering heat of the summer to the frigid Arctic temperatures we have seen this winter.”
And now the snow. Johannes, Sonia said, will shovel.
An addendum: I wondered what was going on with the building in that none of the tenants have kicked Johannes out, and it looks like it is empty — and for sale. There’s a listing for $25 million; it last sold in 2009 for $10 million. From the listing: “With 18,740 sqft above grade, 9,040 sqft below and over 3000 sqft in air rights the building has the ability to be converted to the most spectacular downtown condos, private residence, social club or gallery house.”
It’s also in the Tribeca South Historic District, so I will write it up soonish.
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We actually refer to him as an urban camper, given how well-outfitted he seems to be. Very nice guy — I always say hello and wave/nod to him, and he does the same. I’ve offered to get him help in the past and he assured me he’s connected with the church, etc., and has what he needs. Many years ago on a cold night I went down there to give him some of the chili we had made. He asked me if it was vegan. (It wasn’t).
He’s been in the neighborhood for at least 16years and moved around. He used to walk around a lot more, but has declined in health and acquired a walker in recent years. My friend offers him food all the time and he doesn’t accept. I have heard people offering him shelter and he refuses. My son just ran over to check if he survived this storm and came home to say, “he’s still alive.” Every storm, we wonder about Johannes.
Same with “Odin” on Warren (always having deep chats and grunts mid-sentence). He is almost always out there in the worst weather. I’ve offered food, blankets, etc., but he usually refuses. (However, he does like coffee, and I gave him a long coat a few years ago which he gladly accepted and I still see him wearing, although it’s way too small for him).
So much more to say about helping all of the un-housed in this city, beyond our little bubble. Nonetheless, I wish these stalwarts would retreat to the warming centers for the extreme cold weather.
But in all seriousness, why is this ok?? There are plenty of shelters in nyc, and clearly he has family. Why does he have to set up camp on a public sidewalk? This makes the street look terrible. I live on Reade St and know that this has caused resale issues for nearby condos. He steals electricity from the building, which means someone is paying for that, and given the garbage around him also creates a rat hazard. Maybe instead of CB1 complaining about sidewalk dining they should be concerned about sidewalk camping.
Bingo… exactly how I feel.. can we stop romanticizing this situation? this is not ok.. the city has systems in place to deal with this.. maybe he is a great person, but it still doesn’t make it ok to be living in the street.
Yikes…this is a selfish and heartless take. He keeps his area clean, he doesn’t bother anyone, and is not asking for anything from you. He doesn’t create any more of a rat issue than the odd tourist dropping food on the street and can’t be adding more than a few extra dollars in electricity costs. I live on this street too and it has never once bothered me. Regardless of what WE think is best for him, he deserves to have his own agency. No one is romanticizing — just discussing the reality of who he is and how he lives.
I don’t frequent this area much, so I can’t speak to this particular man. It’s just so heart breaking that many of the homeless refuse assistance. The mayor, DHS is offering so many options to get out of the cold. Camping is not a human right. Why would you turn down housing? What more as a society can we do? I have tried with a number of homeless individuals to get them help and it hurts (my ego?) that I can’t solve the problem.
he should at the very least be given accommodations like illegals who came in via Biden Admin have been given, (William and Wall Migrant hotel and cash cards) or, is it that if he didn’t come via the cartels with Biden Admin he doesn’t qualify ? It may sound like I’m being facetious but I’m not.
Must you people politicize everything?
It doesn’t sound like you are being facetious, quite the opposite. You come across as I imagine you intended – opinionated by way of over-generalizing, uncaring and selfish. Thanks for sharing.
Agree. He obviously has mental health issues and needs intervention. This only ends one way. When the unfortunate happens, everyone will say “why didn’t someone do something”? Look no further than our current government which will continue to allow this type of behavior to flourish – to the detriment of the humans involved, the neighborhood and the broader community. No one is winning here.
I’ve spoken with him many times over the years. The story he told me was that he was from The Netherlands, outside of Amsterdam. Something about losing his passport so unable to go home. Also something about legal issues which was a very complicated story. He was hoping things would resolve soon and he could go home. That was 4 years ago. I’m not sure if any of what he told me was based in reality. I’ve offered food, hand warmers, and to help him get permanent housing. He doesn’t want the assistance.
I strongly disagree with the decision to publish this article. A vulnerable person isn’t a neighborhood curiosity. This started as a conversation between two friends — “Do you know anything about this guy?” “I don’t, you should go ask him yourself” — that should have stayed private.
Tribeca Citizen also chose not to speak with Johannes directly, describing him in advance as “clearly unstable.” That’s a dehumanizing assumption to make about anyone.
I’m also curious whether Johannes consented to having his name, photograph, and personal details published. When Sonia was chatting with him, did she mention it was for an article, or did he think he was just talking to a friendly neighbor? (And if he’s assumed to be “clearly unstable”, is it reasonable to assume he could give meaningful consent?)
Some of the comments are gross. I’d genuinely like to know what purpose Tribeca Citizen thinks this article serves.
Someone who has lived on public property for 16 years, in the same neighborhood, is not seeking nor is he able to demand privacy. There is nothing illegal about Sonia Stock telling me what he told her. And anyone can be photographed in public at any time.
I’m not a lawyer, so I can’t speak to the legality of it but I do try to live my life by the golden rule. So I can and do question the morality of it. To me, publishing this denigration of a human being less fortunate than your readership feels wrong. All the more as calling him “clearly unstable” feels judgmental, callous, and beneath what I would hope for in terms of journalistic integrity. I walk by him most every day and have never once seen him bother anyone in the least. If anything, I see plenty of people interacting with him. To your point, we don’t know his backstory. So why drag his humanity through the mud publicly? I would hope those of us lucky enough to afford to live in this neighborhood can recognize how fortunate we are. This man deserves kindness given what must be a difficult set of life circumstances that we privileged Tribecans probably can’t even imagine.
This entire chain of comments is interesting. While I don’t doubt that many feel compassion when it comes to this man, I also agree with those who have asked “why is this ok?”. Why is it ok to have an article about it? Why is it ok for him to be there for years? And I’d ask all of those who are call themselves feeling compassion and trying to help him, if he was a Black homeless man, would you feel the same way? Before you accuse me of making this about race, let me be clear – I am. Because it is really sad that even when it comes to unhoused individuals, there is privilege. There is no way that a Black homeless man would be allowed to stay there for 6 days, let alone 6 or 16 years. And to “SF” who made the ignorant comments about the Biden administration and immigrants, try to be more serious.
While the points you raise aren’t unreasonable, I’m more inclined to look at the potential result of publishing this.
More people will become aware of the living, conscious being that they’d ordinarily, reflexively consign to complete obscurity as they go through their day.
It’s possible that something will click with someone who knows a route to getting this person help he can use. This matter may or may not be insoluble, but could not possibly benefit from remaining in darkness.
Johannes is very confident in his ability to live on the street. He is a vegetarian which may be why he turns down food. He clearly has mental instability. If you talk to him, he begins on conspiracy theories involving the government, aliens, etc… he’s very peaceful but one would think he’d be safer and perhaps happier properly medicated
Homeless people living on the street is not OK because they destroy the quality of life for everyone else. Just look at places like SF. Go ahead and feel sorry for them and try to help them (oh, and make sure you signal your virtue) but don’t allow them to stay on the street.
I don’t often walk that way but when in the area I will check out and see if he is there…and hopefully see that he is doing well. Surprisingly, after all these years he is doing well…with help from some neighbors. He wants to do his thing and is not harming anyone so I can’t understand the vitriol from some.