Chappaqua Renovating Train Station For Restaurant

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y. – Town officials are in the early stages of renovating the Chappaqua Train Station in hopes of having it ready to bring a restaurant to the vacant building, said Town Planner Sabrina Charney Hull.

The leading candidate to take over the building is Sutter’s Track 32, which made its proposal to the New Castle Town Board two months ago. The full-scale restaurant and coffee shop was proposed by Lesley Sutter, who was previously the head chef at The Flying Pig in Mount Kisco.

“We need to do a lot of calculations based on what the restaurant use will require in terms of gas needs, electrical needs, kitchen, that type of thing,” Hull said, “to make sure we have the basic utilities that would be needed for that type of use, so we’re still in the investigation stages.”

Sutter hopes to have the restaurant up and running by the spring of 2013. To get there, she said, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, a sprinkler system, propane and gas locations, plumbing, sinks and more would need to be installed.

Hull said the Town Board has hired a structural engineer to do a report to determine where improvements need to made to meet those needs. She said the town is trying to move quickly on the project, but needs the report back before being able to take the next step.

“We’re waiting for the structural report, which is about four weeks out,” Hull said. “We’re trying to move as quickly as possible, but certain things need to be done so we’ll know what the cost will be.”

While the exact cost is unknown, Town Administrator Penny Paderewski said the town set aside funds in the 2012 budget to renovate the building.

Click here to follow Daily Voice Chappaqua and receive free news updates.