Lehighton Area School District officials and project managers put shovel to dirt Thursday morning to kick off a multimillion dollar athletic stadium expansion.

The groundbreaking ceremony officially begins the $6.3 million project which will leave the district with an artificial turf playing surface and move Lehighton's football games from an aging complex next to its middle school.Located between the district administration building and Lehighton High School, the new stadium will host home football, field hockey, soccer and track and field events. In addition, booster club teams are also planning to utilize the field.The debate over building a new stadium versus renovating the old stadium dates back more than 15 years.In 1996, Architerra, a Coopersburg architectural firm, drafted a plan for a complex at what will be the new stadium site.It included an all-weather track, which has since been added, and room for a football stadium and fieldhouse.In addition to an artificial turf playing surface, the current project includes a visitor and home grandstand, press box, 62-foot by 260-foot field house, 42-foot by 74-foot restroom/maintenance building, a 119-vehicle paved parking lot and a 100-vehicle grass overflow lot; and installing a new lighting system for the field and paved parking areas.CMG of Easton was awarded the general construction contract in May.For more on the groundbreaking, visit

www.tnonline.com and read Friday's print edition of the Times News.