A new farmer's market opening inside a converted Hollywood steel factory is a mammoth undertaking, offering everything from locally grown produce to handmade soaps. With activities for the kids, a wine bar (on Thursday nights) and places to snack, it's also shaping up as a destination for all ages.

``It's urban, it's rustic, it's what going green is all about,'' said Maria Mogyorossy, an organic coffee, wine and wine mix merchant from Miami.

She'll be among the 300 vendors who will be ready for business at the former industrial space when it opens at 7 a.m. Nov. 8 as the Yellow Green Farmers Market. It will be open Thursday nights and during the day Saturday and Sunday.

Violeta Beaumont, the market's administrative manager, called the venture a ``groundbreaking concept'' from Abraham Lalo, owner of Invicta Watch Group, which has its headquarters in Hollywood.

The 100,000-square-foot venue will be filled with an eclectic mix of merchants selling natural and organic products, art and crafts by South Florida artists, homemade pasta, artisan breads, hand-stitched clothes, handmade instruments, antiques and much more. The emphasis is on organic, earth-friendly and local, with the motto ``Planting a New Seed.''

City meets country with rows of metal and rustic wood stalls, container barrels, bales of hay and crude wagons made of planks. Canvas space dividers, wall-size farm scenes and two clotheslines with blue jeans and flannel shirts bring a folksy balance to the cavernous structure's iron-beam ceilings and corrugated steel walls.

Stephanie Devane of Pembroke Pines will sell handmade dance tutus and hair accessories for little girls. Her friend, Vivian Serret, also of Pembroke Pines, will offer fragrant natural soaps she makes herself. ``There is something heartwarming about organic and natural products,'' Serret said. ``They are real.''

John Mayes of Coral Springs, who owns a medical equipment company, and his friend Albert Purvis, a truck driver from Plantation, will bring fresh-picked vegetables and fruits to two booths at the Hollywood market. The duo operates Baleigh's Organic Produce cooperative distribution program for about 15 North Broward families.

``It's time for us to spread the wealth around further,'' Mayes said.

``Eat healthy, be healthy, live longer,'' Purvis added.

Vendors pay for spaces monthly; the cost is $15 a day.

Beaumont said the market will be an experience for the entire family. Some art vendors will provide activities for kids and there will be coin-operated kiddie rides. The market will also feature a wine bar, a barbecue dining area and live music on Thursdays, Beaumont said.

Chef Chris Collier of Hollywood, a self-described soup master, said he missed the opportunity to sell his soups, organic breads and hot sauces this month, but he'll keep trying. For now, he intends to buy.

``There's a heck of a buzz out there about this place already because people love to shop in open markets,'' Collier said. ``Customers will drive miles for it.''

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