WESTBROOK — The school expansion project is on track to go to bid by the end of April.

The project, which includes the renovations of Saccarappa School and Westbrook Middle School, is in the final design phase. According to Superintendent of Schools Peter Lancia, the project is progressing on schedule.

Westbrook voters on Nov. 8 approved the $27.3 million school expansion bond 5,291-3,804. Architect Dan Cecil of Harriman Associates has been developing the plans for the project.

Lancia said once the final design is complete it must be approved by the School Committee, which is expected to happen in April. Although the renovations are happening at two different locations, Lancia said they will go out to bid as one project. After a bid is accepted, the renovations will begin.

“Assuming that’ll all go smoothly, we’re hoping to break ground by the time school closes,” Lancia said.

Starting the construction while the students are on summer vacation will allow a lot of the louder work to be done without disrupting learning.

“Hopefully we can complete a lot of noisy work over the summer,” Lancia said.

Once school starts in the fall, the renovations will be done in phases so students can continue to occupy the building.

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.

The school will have 12 new general classrooms 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.

“People are getting really excited about it, which is great,” Lancia said. “It’s been a dream for a lot of people in the Saccarappa neighborhood for a while now.”

Westbrook Middle School, which opened in 2010 at 471 Stroudwater St., is having 12 new classrooms added. Although the building is new, it’s considered over capacity by more than 100 students.

“We’ve kind of outgrown it already,” Lancia said.

A third floor will be added to the school and an addition will be built up along one side of the building.

Lancia said Harriman Associates has been very thoughtful in its designs for project. He said the architects “care about how the space will work, not just how it will look.”

“They really understand that it’s a school,” Lancia said. “They understand that this is for people, for school-aged children.”

According to Lancia, renovations at Westbrook Middle School will take one year and the school will be completed by the fall of 2018. Renovations at Saccarappa School will take up to 20 months with the school expected to be completed by the fall of 2019.

Kate Gardner can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 125 or kgardner@theforecaster.net. Follow her on Twitter: @katevgardner.

With a line of coats and boots in the foreground, students sit and eat on a table set up outside their classroom in the hallway of Westbrook’s Saccarappa Elementary School last winter. Due to a small cafeteria space, students eat in classrooms. The school will more than double in size as part of the city’s  $27.3 million school expansion project.

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