Last modified: Thursday, July 9, 2009 11:24 AM EDT A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the Nine Lives of Norton's new cat shelter on Hill Street in Norton just before it rained on Wednesday afternoon. Here, from left, Nine Lives medical coordinators Kim Whynacht and Cindy Bliss talk to Nine Lives volunteer Ruth Goold after the ceremony. Whynacht is holding Simba, left, whom she adopted from Nine Lives. Bliss is holding Dewey, one of the 100 cats available from Nine Lives. (Photo by Michael Gelbwasser) Norton shelter beats rain, breaks ground BY MICHAEL GELBWASSER SUN CHRONICLE STAFF NORTON - Ground was broken Wednesday on Norton's new Hill Street cat shelter. And then it rained cats and dogs. Digging in with cat scoops under dark gray skies, Nine Lives of Norton Feline Rescue Shelter supporters, as well as town and Mansfield Bank officials, dedicated the vacant town land the nonprofit group is leasing from Norton. The new building will occupy the same site as the Norton Animal Shelter. Nine Lives formed in 1997 and has most recently leased the town-owned former Jackson Nursery greenhouse/potting shed on Route 123, volunteer Ruth Goold said. The building is "beginning to fall down and is just bursting with cats and kittens," she said. Nine Lives hopes to move into its new home by mid-fall, "so we can have a grand opening and have everybody come in and see our cats," she said. "It has been a struggle at times, but we have a wonderful group of people," Goold told the crowd. "We really can't ask for anything more. They go beyond our expectations. The support of the townspeople has been fantastic. Without that support, we would not be as far as we are," she said A unanimous vote at the May 2008 special town meeting authorized selectmen to lease the site to Nine Lives or a similar nonprofit. Town Manager James Purcell and Selectmen Vice Chairman Robert Kimball Jr. attended Wednesday's ceremony. Nine Lives has raised $170,000 toward the $200,000 needed to build and furnish the building. Donations may be sent to P.O. Box 548, Norton, MA 02766 or by visiting www.ninelivesofnorton.org. The Mansfield Bank Charitable Foundation has agreed to donate $5,000. Nine Lives currently has 100 cats, including about 50 kittens in foster homes. Contractors have poured foundation walls and dug holes for the new handicapped-accessible facility. MICHAEL GELBWASSER covers Norton for The Sun Chronicle. He can be reached at 508-236-0439 or at mgelbwasser@thesunchronicle.com.