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
February 25, 2021

Gardiner city councilor says she’s being ‘poor-shamed,’ won’t resign over unpaid taxes

Penny Sergent, who took office in January, said she’s being poor-shamed by other city councilors, and won’t quit. Several councilors called on Sergent to resign Wednesday after they learned of her unpaid taxes.
Published
February 24, 2021

Gardiner city councilor behind on property taxes, asked to resign

Penny Sergent, who was elected in November as one of three at-large city councilors in Gardiner, owes more than $12,000 in back real estate and property tax.
Published
February 24, 2021

Suspended Gardiner attorney denies claims in second civil complaint

Clarence H. ‘Skip’ Spurling denies the allegations of a woman who says he sexually assaulted her, saying she consented to his conduct and that no attorney-client relationship existed when the conduct in question took place.
Published
February 17, 2021

Video: Augusta Civic Center gets up and running as mass vaccination site

The first day of the clinic was expected to serve 200 people who had already registered, with 1,344 vaccinations anticipated to be given this week.
Published
February 16, 2021

Kennebec commissioners vote to move Augusta’s Melville Fuller statue

The unanimous decision at Tuesday’s commissioners meeting is not the end of the process, as a committee is expected to be named to make a recommendation where the statue will go.
Published
February 14, 2021

Central Maine restaurateurs work through uncertainty

Eleven months after the global coronavirus pandemic was declared, three restaurant owners talk about pushing past profound challenges to start or sustain their new businesses.
Published
February 13, 2021

Maine Pond Hockey Classic scales back competition, ups the fun in Sidney

Despite the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, organizers of the annual mid-winter event drew teams to central Maine who turned out for the love of the sport.
Published
February 10, 2021

Gardiner gives initial approval to cannabis testing lab

The Massachusetts-based MCR Labs must also secure state approvals from the Office of Marijuana Policy and the Center for Disease Control as well as a business license from the Gardiner City Council.
Published
February 8, 2021

Augusta’s Red Barn to open location on State Street

The popular restaurant has leased 256 State St., the Augusta location of Frosty’s Donuts, for a fried chicken takeout restaurant, which is scheduled to open March 1.
Published
February 8, 2021

Gardiner fish passage restoration work continues

The Gardiner City Council has endorsed sending a letter of support in restoring fish passage to the state Division of Marine Resources.