HAMDPEN – In selecting the location for a new SAD 22 high school, administrators saved time and $320,000 siting the entrance off Route 202. Now they’re asking the community to weigh in on the fate of the old Hampden Academy.

The Hampden Academy Building Committee scheduled a public forum from 6 to 8 tonight in the high school’s gym. The purpose of the meeting is twofold, said Assistant Superintendent Emil Genest.

“We’re going down two tracks,” Genest said. “We’re building a new high school, and we’re trying to determine what we’re going to do with the old Hampden Academy.”

The new high school that will serve students from Hampden, Winterport and Newburgh, will be located on a 17-acre parcel owned by SAD 22 in Hampden. The property would extend the campus created by the Reeds Brook Middle School, George B. Weatherbee School and the Earl C. McGraw School, but rather than accessing the school via Route 1A, the school entrance will be located off Route 202, said SAD 22 Superintendent Rick Lyons.

The entrance will be built between the Edwards Family Shop N Save and the Maine Savings Federal Credit Union along Route 202, where there is a traffic stoplight, Lyons said. The district could break ground as early as summer 2009, Genest said.

The Department of Transportation actually owns the road-front 3.5 acres between the two businesses, but is willing to sign a memorandum of understanding allowing SAD 22 to build the school entrance. The agreement moved the project forward significantly, and the district avoided purchasing or swapping land for road access, Genest said. The 3.5-acre parcel was appraised at approximately $320,000, so the agreement saved the district a significant amount of money, he said.

Preliminary plans show that the existing outdoor track may be relocated to make way for the new school, Lyons said. If sections of the site cannot be built upon because of wetlands, the town of Hampden owns an abutting 13.8-acre parcel and has offered a limited amount to make the project work, he said.

“To SAD 22’s credit, they are working very hard to make this a reality,” said Town Manager Susan Lessard. “I have said for years before the Hampden Academy project came along, our educational system is one of our best economic development tools.”

The school entrance off Route 202 would provide access to landlocked town-owned land designated for community green space, Lyons said. The alternative entrance also would alleviate traffic on Route 1A, he said. An alternative traffic study needs to be conducted, but the state Department of Education has agreed to cover the cost, he said.

“We believe we have found a suitable site now, and new construction is inevitable,” Genest said.

The next step is to determine what will become of the old high school and, in particular, the historic 1843 building, he said. Many suggestions have been laid on the table, including a museum, but the district is seeking more community involvement, Lyons said.

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