GREENBUSH — A construction project that will provide more space for town government operations is under way, according to Town Manager Robert Littlefield.

A portable classroom formerly used by the local school has been placed on a concrete slab and is in the process of being attached to the town hall, the manager said.

When the work is completed early next year, town staff will move into their new work space. Their current offices, which are too small for the community’s needs, will be torn down.

According to Littlefield, the town’s original plan was to install the addition over a full basement, which would have provided a storage area for town records, and space for a fireproof vault and the furnace.

When the hole for the basement was dug, however, the excavator hit water 5 feet below the surface, forcing officials to revise their plan.