Chelsea teens who want to learn a trade now have a brand-new place to do it.

Northeast Metro Tech, the regional vocational high school that serves Chelsea and 11 other communities, celebrated its new building in Wakefield with a ribbon-cutting on Oct. 1, according to the school.

A $317 million campus

The new school cost about $317 million. It covers about 386,000 square feet and is designed for about 1,600 students in grades 9–12, according to the district's building project site.

The 12 member communities are Chelsea, Malden, Melrose, North Reading, Reading, Revere, Saugus, Stoneham, Wakefield, Winchester, Winthrop and Woburn. Construction began in August 2023.

The building is fully accessible and all-electric. It was planned to run on a solar farm the town of Wakefield was installing nearby, the Melrose Messenger reported in February. The state's school building authority is covering about $140 million of the cost, according to that report.

Students ran the show

The ribbon-cutting was a student showcase. Student leaders gave guests tours of the new building, and culinary students served appetizers, desserts and drinks.

Superintendent David DiBarri welcomed guests. Speakers included State Treasurer Deb Goldberg, state Education Commissioner Pedro Martinez and State Sen. Jason Lewis.

Chelsea was in the room

Chelsea sent a delegation, according to the Chelsea Record. City Manager Fidel Maltez, City Councilor Calvin Brown and Chelsea's representative on the Northeast Regional School Committee attended. The Record noted that thousands of Chelsea students have received vocational training at the school over the years.

More room, new programs

Getting in hasn't been easy. The same February report said the school had selected 325 students from more than 2,000 applicants that school year.

"Ten years ago, we couldn't even fill all of our open slots," DiBarri told the paper.

The bigger building is meant to help. The school announced four new programs for 2026–27 in its August welcome-back message: biotechnology, construction craft laborers, marketing and medical assisting. Its September newsletter confirmed that biotechnology and construction craft laborers students were already taking part in hands-on work. The school also decided to close its graphic arts program, which DiBarri said had lost relevance in the job market.

What's next on campus

The work isn't finished. The old school building will be torn down, and the site will become playing fields, tennis and basketball courts, parking and landscaping. Full project completion is expected in summer 2027, according to the building project site.

What to watch

None of the sources reported how many Chelsea students attend now, or how many more Chelsea students the larger building could take. Families interested in applying can find details on the school's website.

The approximately $140 million state share was reported in February.