Historic Augusta, Maine is bursting with renewal

ENGLAND’S BIGGEST STATE AND A, BIG RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT. A RIVER THAT’S LITERALLY BEEN. BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE. WE WOULDN’T BE STANDING HERE. THAT’S HOW BAD IT WAS. NOW IT’S A HUGE DRAW WITH A. BEAUTIFUL BIKE PATH BESIDE IT. IT’S BEAUTIFUL TRAIL, FIRST OF ALL, BECAUSE IT GOES RIGHT ALONG, THE RIVER AND IT SAVED. RIVER HAS REVITALIZED THE WHOLE CITY. AUGUSTA HAS A REAL BIG URBAN. FEEL. BUT THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY IS, LIKE PALPABLE, A COMMUNITY THAT, CREATED ITS OWN PLACE TO PLAY A, GAME THAT FIRST REQUIRES A QUICK, LESSON ON HOW TO PRONOUNCE IT. PEYTON. PEYTON YEAH, IT’S A COMMUNITY. THAT’S DETERMINED TO HOLD ON TO. ITS HISTORY. HE WILL LOVE COMING INTO A. CONSTRUCTION ZONE, RIGHT? AND IN THE SHADOW OF A. STATEHOUSE, A ONE OF A KIND, MUSEUM, YOU’VE LIKELY NEVER. HEARD OF. FIRST CLUE, THE NUMBER ONE PLUS A SMALL DETOUR TO AN A-1, BREAKFAST. PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY HAVE HEARD OF A-1. IT’S THE MAIN STREETS AND BACK. ROADS OF AUGUSTA, MAINE. NEXT ON CHRONICLE, THIS IS, CHRONICLE ON CHANNEL FIVE. IT’S NOT ONE OF MAINE’S BIGGER, CITIES, ONLY 12TH IN TERMS OF POPULATION, BUT IT SITS SQUARELY, ON THE KENNEBEC IS THE CENTER OF KENNEBEC COUNTY. AND AS THE STATE CAPITAL IS AT THE HEART OF MAINE ITSELF, BUT, MORE IMPORTANTLY, AUGUSTA HAS, LONG HISTORY INCLUDES A NEW, CHAPTER TODAY THAT IS ALL ABOUT RESURGENCE AND RENEWAL. HE WAS VERY BUSY WHEN I WAS A. KID. THAT CHANGED WHEN THE MALLS. STARTED COMING TO AUGUSTA AND A. LOT OF BUSINESS KIND OF MOVED, OUT OF DOWNTOWN, OUT TO THE MALLS. SO THAT CHANGED THE CULTURE A, LITTLE BIT. YEAH. AUGUSTA NATIVE ATTORNEY AND, FORMER CITY COUNCILOR MARK,

O’BRIEN WAS ELECTED MAYOR IN, 2022, AND HE SEES A DIFFERENT. DOWNTOWN AND CITY TODAY. THERE’S A LOT OF NEW VITALITY, HERE DOWNTOWN, A LITTLE BIT OF A FOOD SCENE GOING ON HERE. YEAH, THERE ARE SOME VERY GOOD. RESTAURANTS DOWN HERE. PEOPLE WANT TO COME HERE AND. LIVE HERE AND BE IN A VIBRANT. DOWNTOWN. BUT O’BRIEN IS FIRST TO AGREE, THERE’D BE NO HOPEFUL AND NEW. CHAPTER IN AUGUSTA WITHOUT. HAVING FIRST DEALT WITH AN OLD, AND VERY DIRTY ONE. THE RIVER USED TO BE PRETTY FOUL. TO PUT IT MILDLY, FOR NEARLY 200, YEARS, PAPER AND OTHER MILLS ON, THE KENNEBEC HERE TREAT THE RIVER LIKE. WELL, THE RIVER WAS TREATED LIKE. AN OPEN SEWER BY THE PAPER MILLS. AND BY THE TOWNS. HOW BAD HAD IT GOTTEN? WE WOULDN’T BE STANDING HERE. THAT’S HOW BAD IT WAS. THERE WERE TIMES IN THE MID 60S, WHERE THE ENTIRE RIVER WAS WAS, DEAD FISH FLOATING. THERE WAS NO DISSOLVED OXYGEN LEFT IN THE RIVER. THE LEGISLATURE WOULD ADJOURN BECAUSE IT SMELLED SO BAD. SO IT’S KIND OF HARD TO IMAGINE. HOW BAD IT HAD GOTTEN. FINALLY, THE DAM BROKE, LITERALLY. FIRST THE MILLS BEGAN TO SHUT DOWN. THEN IN 1999, AFTER YEARS OF STRUGGLE, THE EDWARDS DAM THAT. HAD POWERED THE MILLS WAS, REMOVED. THE RESULTS FOR THE RIVER WERE. BOTH STUNNING AND NEARLY INSTANT. GENIUS. LITERALLY OVERNIGHT, FISH WERE. SPOTTED ALL THE WAY UP IN, WATERVILLE, 18 MILES UP. IT HADN’T BEEN ABLE TO SWIM, THERE FREELY IN 137 YEARS. NOW YOU’VE GOT PEOPLE COMING DOWN AND WATCHING STURGE AND. LEAPING OUT OF THE WATER. IT’S IT’S INCREDIBLE. IT’S REALLY AMAZING INDEED. WITH A CLEAN RIVER. AGAIN, AUGUSTA’S ANNUAL SUMMER. STURGEON RUN WHEN THE HUGE FISH, SPAWN AND SWIM UPRIVER HAS BECOME A MUST SEE VIEWING HERE IN TURN, IN 2022, IT SPAWNED ITS.

OWN PUBLIC ART PROJECT. 26 LOCAL ARTISTS DESIGN THEIR, OWN FIBERGLASS FISH. SAFE TO SAY THAT’S THE FIRST, TIME AS AN ARTIST YOU’VE EVER, PAINTED ON A STURGEON. THAT’S CORRECT. AUGUSTA NATIVE HEATHER ALLEN HAS RETURNED TO HER HOMETOWN, WHERE, SHE SEES THE PUBLIC ART AS A, HOPEFUL SIGN. WHEN I WAS GROWING UP HERE, WATER STREET WAS A GHOST TOWN, AND SINCE I’VE MOVED BACK,, THERE’S BEEN SO MUCH DEVELOPMENT. AND I THINK HAVING THE STURGEON AND JUST POPS OF COLOR ALONG THE STREET WAS JUST REALLY. BEAUTIFUL. THE CITY THAT HAD RETREATED FROM ITS RIVER NOW HUGS IT WITH A SIX AND A HALF MILE BIKE TRAIL, SWIMS IN IT WITH AN IRONMAN RACE, AND FISHES IN IT KNOWING FISH. LIKE THE CITY ARE BACK. YOU’VE ALWAYS EXISTED BECAUSE OF THE RIVER. WE’VE ALWAYS RELIED ON THE RIVER, FOR INDUSTRY AND NOW TO HAVE IT, BACK AND TO HAVE IT AS AN ATTRACTION TO BRING PEOPLE DOWN, IT’S JUST HUGE. I THINK WE’RE IN A STRONG. POSITION. LIKE MOST COMMUNITIES, WE HAVE A CHALLENGE WITH HOUSING AND THE. SHORTAGE OF HOUSING. I THINK WE HAVE A LOT OF. POTENTIAL, A LOT OF THINGS TO WORK ON, BUT I’M GLAD I’M HERE. I WOULDN’T BE ANYWHERE ELSE. AND IF YOU’VE NEVER SEEN A. STURGEON LEAP OUT OF THE WATER, TELL TED TELLS US IT IS QUITE A, SIGHT. THEY CAN GROW TO 12FT LONG AND. WEIGH 800 POUNDS. THEY SPAWN IN THE KENNEBEC RIVER. IN LATE JUNE AND EARLY JULY. AND IF YOU MISS THE REAL THING,, THE CITY’S STURGEON SCULPTURES. WILL REAPPEAR DOWNTOWN IN LATE MAY, AND THE IRONMAN RACE RETURNS TO AUGUSTA ON JULY 30TH. ALL THANKS TO A CLEANED UP KENNEB,