Construction of new Durfee High School kicks off with groundbreaking

By: Amanda Pitts

alpitts@abc6.com

@APittsABC6

FALL RIVER, Mass. (WLNE) — City and school officials held the official groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the brand new Durfee High School on Thursday.

“It’s a long time coming. This is great for the city of Fall River, this is great for future generations of students, and I just can’t be happier to be a part of it,” said Principal Matthew Desmarais.

The ceremony marked the official start of construction on the new high school after voters approved a $165 million bond in March to fund the $263.5 million project. The state will kick in the rest.

“To all of you parents that went out there and did this, the students and the teachers, to get that vote…we also want to thank you personally,” said Matthew Malone, Superintendent of Schools.

The new school will be built on Durfee’s current campus. The fieldhouse will be getting a facelift, and the athletic fields and auditorium will stay.

Officials say the current 40-year-old building has had serious issues from the start.

“The infrastructure of the school is crumbling. The heating system needs replacing, the roof leaks, the windows don’t open. I could go on and on,” said Desmarais.

Senior Catarina Pereira said she and her classmates have felt unsafe at school.

“A couple months ago my teacher had a ceiling tile fall above her head, and we were so scared…we were in dire need of a new school and the conditions were so bad that we needed, we really needed a new environment,” said Pereira.

She took initiative, joining the Durfee Building Committee, helping to drum up support in the community. All of her hard work paid off at Thursday’s groundbreaking.

“Even though I won’t be in the building myself, it’s good to see that the next generation of students are having this opportunity.”

The brand new Durfee High School is expected to open in 2021.

For updates on the construction of the new school, click here.

(c) WLNE-TV 2018