diff --git a/.claude/rules/stack-and-commands.md b/.claude/rules/stack-and-commands.md
index f35aef1..1923bdb 100644
--- a/.claude/rules/stack-and-commands.md
+++ b/.claude/rules/stack-and-commands.md
@@ -6,17 +6,16 @@
 ## Dev Commands
 
 ```bash
+# MCP bridge — local (no cluster)
+make bridge-install   # once
+make bridge-test      # pytest smoke tests
+make bridge-run       # uvicorn on :8080
+
 # Deploy observability stack (from repo root)
 cd ansible && ansible-playbook -i inventories/local.ini playbook.yml
 
-# MCP bridge (local)
-cd mcp-telemetry-bridge
-pip install -r requirements.txt
-uvicorn app.main:app --reload --port 8080
-
 # Smoke (requires cluster access)
 kubectl get pods -n monitoring
 kubectl port-forward -n mcp svc/mcp-telemetry-bridge 8080:80
-curl http://localhost:8080/healthz
-curl http://localhost:8080/mcp/schema | jq .
+make bridge-smoke     # pytest + live curl against :8080
 ```
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..03547ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+.venv/
+__pycache__/
+*.py[cod]
+.pytest_cache/
+*.egg-info/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9ea42a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+.PHONY: bridge-install bridge-run bridge-test bridge-verify bridge-smoke
+
+bridge-install:
+	cd mcp-telemetry-bridge && python3 -m venv .venv && . .venv/bin/activate && pip install -r requirements-dev.txt
+
+bridge-run:
+	cd mcp-telemetry-bridge && ./scripts/run-local.sh
+
+bridge-test:
+	cd mcp-telemetry-bridge && ./scripts/verify-local.sh
+
+bridge-verify: bridge-test
+
+bridge-smoke:
+	cd mcp-telemetry-bridge && RUN_LIVE=1 ./scripts/verify-local.sh
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index dac7c2b..a7047ed 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -15,7 +15,68 @@ TeleMcp deploys a standard observability stack onto a Linux Kubernetes host via
 | **OpenTelemetry Collector** | `observability` | Optional OTLP fan-out to Prometheus and Loki |
 | **mcp-telemetry-bridge** | `mcp` | FastAPI service exposing MCP resources, tools, and prompts |
 
-## Quick Start
+## Local development (no cluster)
+
+Work on the MCP bridge without deploying the full observability stack.
+
+### Install and verify
+
+```bash
+make bridge-install   # venv + deps (once)
+make bridge-test      # pytest smoke: /healthz, /mcp/schema, /mcp/resource
+```
+
+Or from `mcp-telemetry-bridge/`:
+
+```bash
+./scripts/verify-local.sh
+```
+
+### Run locally
+
+```bash
+make bridge-run
+# or: cd mcp-telemetry-bridge && ./scripts/run-local.sh
+```
+
+With the server up, optional live HTTP checks:
+
+```bash
+make bridge-smoke
+# or: RUN_LIVE=1 ./mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/verify-local.sh
+```
+
+Manual curls:
+
+```bash
+curl http://127.0.0.1:8080/healthz
+curl http://127.0.0.1:8080/mcp/schema | jq .
+curl "http://127.0.0.1:8080/mcp/resource?uri=res://dashboards/top-pods-by-cpu.promql"
+```
+
+Tool calls use `POST /tools/<name>` with a JSON body (Prometheus/Loki/K8s backends are only reachable in-cluster).
+
+### Agent quickstart
+
+When changing the bridge, agents should:
+
+1. Run `make bridge-test` after edits — fast, no cluster needed.
+2. Introspect `GET /mcp/schema` for the current tools, resources, and prompts.
+3. Call tools via `POST /tools/<tool-name>` (e.g. `POST /tools/promql.query` with `{"expr":"up"}`).
+4. Fetch saved queries via `GET /mcp/resource?uri=<uri>`.
+
+Expected smoke-test surface:
+
+| Endpoint | Method | Purpose |
+|----------|--------|---------|
+| `/healthz` | GET | Liveness |
+| `/mcp/schema` | GET | MCP catalog (tools, resources, prompts) |
+| `/mcp/resource` | GET | Saved PromQL/LogQL query by URI |
+| `/tools/*` | POST | Execute a tool (needs in-cluster backends) |
+
+---
+
+## Quick Start (full cluster deploy)
 
 ### 0) Prereqs
 
@@ -75,6 +136,8 @@ tele-mcp/
     values/                 # Chart values for monitoring, logging, OTel
     mcp-telemetry-bridge/   # Bridge Helm chart
   mcp-telemetry-bridge/       # FastAPI bridge application
+    scripts/                  # run-local.sh, verify-local.sh
+    tests/                    # pytest smoke tests
   environments/             # Per-environment overrides
   wiki/                     # Extended project and design docs
 ```
diff --git a/mcp-telemetry-bridge/requirements-dev.txt b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/requirements-dev.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8477ab7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/requirements-dev.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+-r requirements.txt
+pytest==8.3.3
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/run-local.sh b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/run-local.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..a90b679
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/run-local.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Run the MCP bridge locally (no Kubernetes required).
+set -euo pipefail
+
+ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." && pwd)"
+cd "$ROOT"
+
+PORT="${PORT:-8080}"
+HOST="${HOST:-127.0.0.1}"
+
+if [[ ! -d .venv ]]; then
+  python3 -m venv .venv
+fi
+# shellcheck disable=SC1091
+source .venv/bin/activate
+
+pip install -q -r requirements.txt
+
+echo "Starting MCP bridge at http://${HOST}:${PORT}"
+echo "Health:  curl http://${HOST}:${PORT}/healthz"
+echo "Schema:  curl http://${HOST}:${PORT}/mcp/schema | jq ."
+exec uvicorn app.main:app --reload --host "$HOST" --port "$PORT"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/verify-local.sh b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/verify-local.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..32109ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/scripts/verify-local.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Local verification harness: pytest smoke tests + optional live HTTP checks.
+set -euo pipefail
+
+ROOT="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")/.." && pwd)"
+cd "$ROOT"
+
+BASE_URL="${BASE_URL:-http://127.0.0.1:8080}"
+RUN_LIVE="${RUN_LIVE:-0}"
+
+if [[ ! -d .venv ]]; then
+  python3 -m venv .venv
+fi
+# shellcheck disable=SC1091
+source .venv/bin/activate
+
+pip install -q -r requirements-dev.txt
+
+echo "==> Running pytest smoke tests"
+pytest -q
+
+if [[ "$RUN_LIVE" == "1" ]]; then
+  echo "==> Live HTTP smoke against ${BASE_URL}"
+  curl -fsS "${BASE_URL}/healthz" | python3 -m json.tool
+  curl -fsS "${BASE_URL}/mcp/schema" | python3 -c "
+import json, sys
+schema = json.load(sys.stdin)
+assert 'tools' in schema and 'resources' in schema and 'prompts' in schema
+print(f\"tools={len(schema['tools'])} resources={len(schema['resources'])} prompts={len(schema['prompts'])}\")
+"
+  echo "Live smoke passed."
+else
+  echo "Skipping live HTTP checks (set RUN_LIVE=1 to curl a running server)."
+fi
+
+echo "Local verification complete."
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/mcp-telemetry-bridge/tests/__init__.py b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/tests/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/mcp-telemetry-bridge/tests/test_smoke.py b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/tests/test_smoke.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..385775c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mcp-telemetry-bridge/tests/test_smoke.py
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+"""Smoke tests for the MCP bridge HTTP surface (no cluster required)."""
+
+from fastapi.testclient import TestClient
+
+from app.main import PROMPTS, RESOURCES, TOOLS, app
+
+client = TestClient(app)
+
+EXPECTED_TOOL_NAMES = {
+    "promql.query",
+    "loki.query",
+    "k8s.get",
+    "k8s.events",
+    "inventory.snapshot",
+}
+
+
+def test_healthz_returns_ok():
+    response = client.get("/healthz")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    body = response.json()
+    assert body["status"] == "ok"
+    assert isinstance(body["ts"], int)
+
+
+def test_mcp_schema_exposes_resources_tools_and_prompts():
+    response = client.get("/mcp/schema")
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    body = response.json()
+
+    assert "resources" in body
+    assert "tools" in body
+    assert "prompts" in body
+
+    assert len(body["resources"]) == len(RESOURCES)
+    assert len(body["tools"]) == len(TOOLS)
+    assert len(body["prompts"]) == len(PROMPTS)
+
+    tool_names = {tool["name"] for tool in body["tools"]}
+    assert tool_names == EXPECTED_TOOL_NAMES
+
+    for tool in body["tools"]:
+        assert "inputSchema" in tool
+        assert tool["inputSchema"]["type"] == "object"
+
+
+def test_mcp_resource_returns_saved_query():
+    uri = "res://dashboards/top-pods-by-cpu.promql"
+    response = client.get("/mcp/resource", params={"uri": uri})
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    body = response.json()
+    assert body["uri"] == uri
+    assert body["mimeType"] == "text/plain"
+    assert "container_cpu_usage_seconds_total" in body["content"]
+
+
+def test_mcp_resource_unknown_uri():
+    response = client.get("/mcp/resource", params={"uri": "res://does-not-exist"})
+    assert response.status_code == 200
+    body = response.json()
+    assert body["error"] == "not found"
+    assert body["uri"] == "res://does-not-exist"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/workplans/TELE-WP-0002-mcp-bridge-local-verification.md b/workplans/TELE-WP-0002-mcp-bridge-local-verification.md
index a30640e..1735103 100644
--- a/workplans/TELE-WP-0002-mcp-bridge-local-verification.md
+++ b/workplans/TELE-WP-0002-mcp-bridge-local-verification.md
@@ -4,11 +4,11 @@ type: workplan
 title: "MCP bridge local verification loop"
 domain: infotech
 repo: tele-mcp
-status: ready
+status: finished
 owner: codex
 topic_slug: custodian
 created: "2026-06-22"
-updated: "2026-06-22"
+updated: "2026-06-24"
 state_hub_workstream_id: "c617a044-bf57-4671-9afd-0112e7f462fd"
 ---
 
@@ -20,9 +20,12 @@ Harden the local dev/test loop for `mcp-telemetry-bridge` independent of full cl
 
 ```task
 id: TELE-WP-0002-T01
-status: todo
+status: done
 priority: high
 state_hub_task_id: "7bad3ebf-f42c-4069-9c13-28bcf231f6f9"
 ```
 
+Result 2026-06-24: Added pytest smoke tests, run/verify scripts, Makefile targets,
+and README local-dev + agent quickstart sections.
+
 Add documented local run path, health/schema smoke tests, and agent-oriented quickstart in README.