Leonard Park Tea House work may be finished by Labor Day

By MARTIN WILBUR

Refurbishment of the Tea House at Leonard Park recently resumed with the latest projection calling for the work to be finished in about another month.

Mount Kisco Village Manager Ed Brancati said this week that the village and the contractor, ELQ Industries, worked out an acceptable arrangement for both parties to complete the project. He expects the work to be done by about Labor Day.

“We’ve worked out all the credits, they had some adjustments we agreed to, so that’s where we’re at,” Brancati said. “So we finally came to an agreement.”

Among the tasks that must still be completed center around the bathrooms, such as tile work, flooring, fixtures and installation of the exterior doors, and finishing the back access ramp, decking and railing.

Work was interrupted late last year when a variety of issues conspired to halt construction despite the majority of the job being finished. There had been delays in the bidding process, revisions in the proposal and errors in ordering material in addition to weather-related stoppages. There were also difficulties with subcontractors and instances where the site wasn’t secured overnight.

In May 2025, ELQ Industries was awarded the bid for $282,817. While there appear to be some additional expenses, the final cost should be close to the original number, Brancati said.

Mayor J. Michael Cindrich repeatedly called for a project manager or clerk of the works to keep the project on target. Brancati said that the project architect and himself are overseeing the remainder of the work.

Upgrades to the 61-year-old Tea House, located near the pond not far from the Route 172 access point to Leonard Park, had been planned. An April 2025 fire that was determined to be arson also damaged the deck.