SABATTUS – School and town officials broke ground Wednesday evening for the new intermediate/middle school being built on Ballpark Road.

“I am really pleased (that) Sabattus is going to have a new school,” Superintendent Paul Malinski said.

Arthur C. Dudley Construction/Builder of Standish is the general contractor for the project.

For the last month workers have been moving earth and clearing trees at the construction site, said Jim Harford, a project manager with Stephen Blatt Architects of Portland.

Foundations are scheduled to be poured next week, he said.

School and town officials alike lauded the project.

“I think it’s going to energize kids knowing the community is investing a large amount in their future,” School Committee member Robert Gayton Jr. said.

School Committee member Gary Blais agreed.

“The facility is going to be gigantic,” he said.

The approximately 48,000-square-foot school will house grades three through eight on Ballpark Road.

The old school will be renovated and house grades kindergarten to second grade.

“I hope that the separation is going (to) give (kids) a better start,” said School Committee Chairwoman Yvonne Winslow.

Selectmen’s Chairman William Luce agreed.

“I think they’re going to have a very upscale, modern facility,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming.”

The project has been in the works for approximately 13 years, said School Committee member Mark Fournier.

The total project will cost approximately $9,139,000, Malinski said.

Voters approved the project in June 2002, he said.

The new school will hold approximately 375 students, Malinski said.

The current school has a space crunch, Assistant Superintendent David Williamson said.

“This (will be) wide open,” he said of the new school. “They’ll have lots of room.”

“It’s going to provide a lot of opportunity for students,” Sabattus Elementary School Principal Beverly Coursey said, adding that the new school will have a new music room, a new art room and a larger library.

School officials have targeted August 2004 as a completion date for the project.

School Committee member Brenda Pelletier said students have higher spirits when they get a chance to study in a new building.

“Hopefully it will give them a better outlook on their education,” she said.