"This will be a museum within the next year to 18 months where schoolchildren can learn how grain was turned into bread and how this process worked." Jordan Fensterman of the Roslyn Landmark Society said that to Long Island Press in late April, at the mill site. Five months later, the building at 1347 Old Northern Boulevard looks closer to that goal than at any point in decades. The doors are still shut.
The new siding shows the mill as it looked in the early 1700s, but the inside still isn't ready for visitors. This fall, the restoration is something to see from the road. The places you can walk into are a few addresses away on Main Street, run by the same people restoring the mill.
What changed in September
On September 14, 2026, the Roslyn Landmark Society announced that the weatherboard installation on the Roslyn Grist Mill is complete. In the Society's words, "for the first time in more than 50 years, the exterior of the building reflects how it looked when it was first constructed at the start of the 18th century."
Those 50 years line up with how long the building has been closed. The mill is owned by Nassau County and managed by the Landmark Society, and it has been closed to the public since 1974. It was built in the late 1690s as a Dutch-framed watermill at the head of Hempstead Harbor. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is believed to be the oldest surviving Dutch commercial structure in the United States.
The Society's announcement asks people to slow down and look as they pass along Old Northern Boulevard. It doesn't offer a way inside.
What still stands between the siding and the front door
The siding was the most visible job. Three kinds of work remain, based on the Society's September update and the county's April funding announcement:
- Shutters and doors. The Society lists this finish work as still to come.
- Structural and accessibility upgrades. The county described these as "needed to reopen the mill to the public" when it handed over funding in April.
- Phase three. Howard Kroplick, the Society's co-president, said the county money would let the project "finish up phase two of this project and even start phase three."
The money is in place. On April 24, County Executive Bruce Blakeman and Comptroller Elaine Phillips delivered the second $1 million of a $2 million county capital award. Time is the open question. In a January report, the Society hoped to finish phase two by summer 2026 and begin phase three in the fall. As of mid-September, the siding is done and the shutters and doors are not. Fensterman's April estimate of 12 to 18 months points to a museum sometime between spring and fall of 2027. That was a hope, and nobody has given a date.
The next milestone is a media day the Society plans for "mid-October," with "details to be announced shortly." As of early October, the Society hasn't published a date or said whether the public can attend.
Who has the keys this fall
The mill is closed, but the Society runs buildings that are open, starting from its headquarters at 36 Main Street.
The Van Nostrand-Starkins House, 221 Main Street. The Society lists the house as open year-round, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Visitors check in at 36 Main Street first, and a staff member walks them over. These are standing hours from an undated listing, so call 516-625-4363 before you plan a weekday visit around them.
Gerry Pond Park. The Town of North Hempstead lists the park at the same 36 Main Street address. It is open 7:30 a.m. to dark and has a walking path and a gazebo. The Hicks Memorial Bridge and Memorial Centre were rededicated in October 2025 after a restoration that included structural and stone repairs, a historically accurate replacement plaque, and a rebuilt railing and sidewalk. The Town's March 2026 State of the Town release lists the bridge restoration as complete. Long Island Press described the park as free in its 2025 coverage.
The Clock Tower. The Village of Roslyn says the tower was recently revitalized, including a cleaning of its limestone, and suggests seeing it from the historic streets around it. The Village doesn't mention interior visits.
That makes a short outdoor loop you can do on any weekday. Pass the mill's new siding on Old Northern Boulevard, cross the restored Hicks bridge, see the cleaned Clock Tower, and end inside a historic house open on a weekday afternoon.
One option is missing this season. The Society's last village walking tour ran Saturday, June 6, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., starting at 36 Main Street. It cost $25 for nonmembers and was free for members. No fall tour date is listed yet.
The dated calendar, in order
Over the next five weeks, the mill's caretakers and the cultural venues nearby have each scheduled something you can attend. In date order:
- Thursday, October 8, 6 to 7:30 p.m. The Landmark Society brings Preservation Long Island curators Lauren Brincat and Steven Baltsas to Bryant Library, 2 Paper Mill Road, to talk about the exhibition Wood and Water: Furniture on Long Island, 1660–1860. The Society lists it as free and asks people to register. The years it covers include the decades when the mill was built.
- Sunday, October 11, 3 p.m. Curator Franklin Hill Perrell talks about Louis Comfort Tiffany's painting at the Nassau County Museum of Art. It is free for members, $20 for nonmembers, $15 for seniors and $10 for students. The museum asks for advance registration.
- Saturday, October 17, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friends of Cedarmere holds a writing retreat at 225 Bryant Avenue with Long Island poets Christina M. Rau and Stefanie Maura. The $85 fee covers coffee, lunch, materials and a donation to Cedarmere.
- Through Sunday, November 8. Louis Comfort Tiffany: Artist of the Gilded Age closes at the Nassau County Museum of Art. The show brings together more than 130 of Tiffany's oil and watercolor paintings, the first time the full scope of that collection has been shown, along with lamps, metalwork and ceramics. The Mansion galleries are open Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., with last tickets at 4:15. The grounds are open daily from 9 a.m. to dusk. The Mansion elevator is out of service for maintenance for now.
- Wednesdays through December 20, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Roslyn Farmers Market runs at Christopher Morley Park, according to the organizer's 2026 schedule. An older Nassau County Tourism guide says the market runs only through November, so check the last date before a December trip.
The mill's caretakers are also running a social calendar
The Landmark Society isn't only raising money for timber and shutters. On September 24, it teamed up with the Greater Roslyn Chamber of Commerce to host the first Taste of Roslyn at Haute Durvo. Rallye Motor Company was the presenting sponsor. The Society reported 225 guests and 14 participating restaurants. The restaurants were Hendrick's, Okaru, Griffin, Alto Enoteca, 388, Sweet Harbor Coffee, Delicacies, Felice, Gold Coast Whisky Club, Uncle Giuseppe's, The Sinclair, Ilios Frozen Greek Yogurt, Mythos and Atlas New World Bistro. Skurnik Wines, Halcyon Liquors and Roslyn Wine and Liquor poured.
Fensterman spoke for the Society and Gwen Levy, the Chamber's president, spoke for the Chamber. The Society called it "a strong foundation to build on next year," which makes it the first of an annual event. The same organization now runs a fundraising dinner, public lectures, a weekday historic house and a building from the late 1690s it is getting ready to open. Its news page is where the mill's media day and opening date will appear first.
Until then, the closest you can get to the Roslyn Grist Mill is the sidewalk on Old Northern Boulevard. The new weatherboards are already up. The shutters and doors are next.
At Golden Real Estate Group, we follow the projects that change the streets around the homes we work with, and the Grist Mill is one of the biggest on the North Shore. If you own near Main Street or Old Northern Boulevard and want to talk about how the restoration fits into your plans, book a consultation with our team.
