Jessica Lowell

Kennebec Journal

Jessica Lowell covers business and economic development and general news in the Gardiner area. After short but intense aspirations to be an opera singer (age 4) and a deep-sea diver (age 6) her most enduring passion has been telling stories. A University of Maine graduate, she worked for newspapers in New Hampshire, upstate New York and Wyoming, where she has won awards for investigative and explanatory journalism. She’s a fellow of the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism and the Institute for Journalism and Natural Resources. After several years out of journalism, she returned to Maine and to writing, where she spends her free time enjoying both trees and the ocean, two commodities that Wyoming lacks.

Latest

Published
December 7, 2022

Kennebec County mulls gift of memorial bench honoring late probate judge

Kennebec County commissioners plan to decide in two weeks whether to accept a granite bench as a memorial to the late Judge James Mitchell, who presided over Kennebec County’s probate court for nearly four decades before his death in 2016.
Published
December 4, 2022

Central Maine restaurant scene welcomes Asian Noodle Bowl and, soon, Jersey Mike’s Subs

Asian Noodle Bowl, which opened just before Thanksgiving, and Jersey Mike’s Subs, a franchise sandwich shop expected to open in March, are new arrivals to central Maine.
Published
November 25, 2022

YMCA Camp of Maine in Winthrop launches $2.5 million fundraising campaign

The camp, which draws both campers and staff locally and from around the world, plans to use the money it’s raising to build the camp’s endowment, make improvements to its buildings and fund scholarships for 218 campers.
Published
November 24, 2022

Scottish Rite Masons bring back Thanksgiving dinner after two-year hiatus

Dozens of people stopped by for the Thanksgiving dinner put on by the Scottish Rite Masons of Augusta Valley at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Kennebec Valley on Thursday, and nearly 70 meals were delivered as the holiday tradition returns after a two-year hiatus.
Published
November 24, 2022

Winter holiday celebrations debut Friday in central Maine

Starting Friday, central Maine’s winter holiday season gets underway, bringing lights, parades, gingerbread and Santa.
Published
November 20, 2022

Gardiner Area High School student funnels fear into action

Shawn Jiminez, a senior, organized a peaceful protest against gun violence in response to what he says is a lack of urgency and education surrounding gun violence and safety in public schools.
Published
November 19, 2022

It’s her day: Gardiner celebrates one of its own while area runners raise funds to boost anti-polio campaign

Saturday’s Turkey Trot, hosted by the Gardiner Rotary Club, drew runners, walkers, turkeys and Katie Schide, who returned to her home town this week after winning the grueling Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc trail race in the Alps earlier this year.
Published
November 17, 2022

Gardiner officials take different path to fill Public Works Department vacancy

Gardiner’s city manager is proposing to find its next Public Works director from the department’s current staff by creating a deputy Public Works director position and providing on-the-job training.
Published
November 16, 2022

Decision delayed on Augusta’s Olde Federal Building redevelopment plan

The Augusta Planning Board has delayed its decision on the redevelopment of the Olde Federal Building because it would like to see more details of what’s being proposed for the high profile historic building in downtown Augusta.
Published
November 16, 2022

Augusta boil water notice lifted after tests show no contamination

The Greater Augusta Utility District lifted the order Wednesday after water samples taken Tuesday following a water pipe break on Haskell Street showed no contamination occurred.