WESTBROOK — Despite the bidding process being delayed, the construction phase of the school expansion project is expected to remain on schedule.

The project is still in the final design phase and is expected to go to bid at the end of May or beginning of June, according to Superintendent Peter Lancia. He had said in March that the request for proposals would go out in April.

A $27.3 million bond for the expansion project, which includes the renovations of Saccarappa School and Westbrook Middle School, was approved by Westbrook voters on Nov. 8. Architect Dan Cecil of Harriman Associates has been developing the plans for the project. 

Lancia on Monday said the architect team of the building committee was scheduled to meet multiple times this week to finalize the design plans.

“We’re working on final designs and final process so when the bid goes out it’s as accurate as possible,” he said.

The proposal request will probably remain active for a month, Lancia said.

The original plan was to start construction the day after school lets out for the summer so crews could maximize the amount of work they could do without students there. Once school starts in the fall, the renovations will be done in phases so students can continue to occupy the buildings.

Lancia said the anticipated construction start date will now be in the beginning of July. He said there may be a groundbreaking ceremony on June 22, the last day of school, though. 

Despite the start date being pushed back a few weeks, Lancia said the project is still expected to be completed on time. Renovations at Westbrook Middle School will take one year and will be completed by the fall of 2018. Renovations at Saccarappa School will take up to 20 months with work expected to be completed by the fall of 2019.

Saccarappa School, which is almost 70 years old, is the larger of the two projects. Lancia said the elementary school, located at 110 Huntress Ave., will more than double in size. Twelve new general classrooms will be added, as well as 12 special education classrooms. There will also be a new library, cafeteria, a full-size gymnasium, music and art rooms, a playground and athletic fields. Additionally, existing parts of the school will be upgraded and renovated.

Twelve new classrooms will be added to Westbrook Middle School, which opened in 2010 at 471 Stroudwater St. Although the building is relatively new, it’s considered over capacity by more than 100 students. A third floor will be added to the school and an addition will be built up along one side of the building.

The Planning Board gave the project preliminary final approval on May 2, and according to Lancia, the board will review the project one more time in June.

Kate Gardner can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 125 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @katevgardner.

Saccarappa Elementary School will more than double in size.

A third floor will be added to Westbrook Middle School as part of the school expansion project.