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Tips for Newcomers

Automobile Registration/Licenses

Mailing address: Secretary of State, Motor Vehicle Division, State House Station 29, Augusta, Maine 04333-0029. Phone: (207) 624-9000. Location: 19 Anthony Avenue, Augusta, Maine.

Child Care

Many excellent child care services are available in the Capital Area. Day care centers, private homes, nursery school programs and after-school child care programs are available. Southern Kennebec Child Development Corporation in Farmingdale is a source of information for parents, employers and providers seeking child care information. Phone: 1-800-525-2229.

Climate

The weather of the area is in four distinct seasons, but without the severe snowfalls and cold of the northern regions. Since Augusta is at the head of tide in the Kennebec River, it is considered coastal, but it lacks the heavy fogs of the seashore towns. The summer heat is comfortably tempered, but a few days occur with maximums reaching as high as 90 degrees. Mid-summer afternoon temperatures are in the ideal range from 75 to 80 degrees on an average day, with the nighttime minimum average in the upper 50s. Uncomfortably hot and humid nights are relatively few. Winters are moderately cold, with a mean temperature of 23 degrees for the three months of December, January and February. Readings of zero or lower are recorded on an average of 13 days per winter.

Clubs/Organizations

Getting together with people who share your interests is an important part of life in the Capital Area. Most national service and social organizations can be found here. For a complete list of clubs and organizations, please contact the Chamber.

Education

The Capital City recently opened the new $30 million Cony High School. Several other area communities are upgrading schools to assure the best educational opportunities for our children.

School systems within the Capital Area are strongly committed to the educational, social and personal development of our children. Our schools are noted for fine academic programs, which have prepared students for the best colleges in the country. To meet the needs of a diverse student population, schools offer special needs and honors programs, as well as alternative programs for students interested in exploring non-traditional environments. For more information, contact the Superintendent’s Office of the City or Town of interest. The University of Maine at Augusta is the state’s third-largest post-secondary education school, serving students on campus, through ITV and its web-based programs. The Kennebec Valley Community College also serves area students.

Public School Superintendent’s Offices:
Augusta — (207) 626-2468
Chelsea/SheepscotValley/Somerville/
Whitefield/Windsor/Wiscasset — (207) 549-3261
Dresden/Farmingdale/Hallowell/
Monmouth/Richmond — (207) 622-6351
Jay/Livermore/Livermore Falls — (207) 897-6722
Gardiner/Pittston/Randolph/West Gardiner — (207) 582-5346
Litchfield/Sabattus/Wales — (207) 375-4273
Manchester/ Mount Vernon/Maranacook/
Readfield/Wayne — (207) 685-3336
Winthrop/Fayette — (207) 377-2296

Private and Parochial Schools:
Dirigere Christian Academy (1-12) — (207) 622-1721
Kents Hill (High School) — (207) 685-4914
Saint Michael’s School (K-8) — (207) 623-3491
Stepping Stones Montessori School (Pre K-8) — (207) 626-5550

Colleges/Universities:
University of Maine at Augusta — (207) 621-3000
Colby College* — (207) 872-3000
Kennebec Valley Community College* — (207) 453-5000
Thomas College* — (207) 859-1101

* These schools are in the Waterville area

Vocational Schools:
Capital Area Technical Center — (207) 626-2475

Hospitals
Alzheimer’s Care Center — (207) 626-1770
152 Dresden Avenue, Gardiner, Maine

Riverview Psychiatric Center — (207) 624-3900
Hospital Street, Augusta, Maine

MaineGeneral Medical Center* — (207) 626-1000
6 E. Chestnut Street, Augusta, Maine

Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care — (207) 621-6100
361 Old Belgrade Road, Augusta, Maine

* The region’s largest private employer, MaineGeneral operates major hospital campuses in Augusta and Waterville and community health centers in a number of area towns.

VA Maine Healthcare System — (207) 623-8411
Togus, Maine

Housing
Housing in the Capital Area is available to suit every taste and need. Median sales price of homes in Kennebec County in 2011 was $130,000, although the range of homes can extend to luxury homes on beautiful lakeside settings. Homes for the most part are located on heavily-vegetated lots whether in the urban areas or in nearby country settings. Apartments are available in the area at reasonable prices, and a number of senior and assisted living homes are available. Please see our membership directory for a full listing of “Real Estate Development Rentals” professionals, or write or call the Chamber for an area real estate guide.

Libraries

Augusta:
Lithgow Public Library — (207) 626-2415

Maine State Library
Located in the Maine State Cultural Building in the State Capitol Complex, the Maine State Library houses an extensive collection of material on Maine history and genealogy.
Library — (207) 287-5600
Archives — (207) 287-5790

University of Maine at Augusta Katz Library — (207) 621-3356

Gardiner:
Gardiner Public Library — (207) 582-3312

Hallowell:
Hubbard Free Library — (207) 622-6582

Richmond:
Richmond Public Library — (207) 737-2770

Wayne:
Cary Memorial Library — (207) 685-3612

Winthrop:
Charles M. Bailey Library — (207) 377-8673

Newspaper/Radio/Television
The Kennebec Journal serves the region as the primary daily newspaper. Several local radio stations are operated by Blueberry Broadcasting, WMME/WEBB/KOOL AM and Mountain Wireless. Time Warner Cable provides cable television, phone and Internet services to the Capital Area. Network service is available via stations WCSH-TV, WGME-TV and WABI-TV located in Bangor, Lewiston/Auburn and Portland, Maine.

Recreation
The Capital Area offers a variety of year-round recreational activities for residents and visitors alike. Surrounded by more than 30 lakes, ponds and the Kennebec River, the Capital Area is well suited for activities such as canoeing/kayaking, boating, swimming, water skiing, sailing, jet skiing, ice skating and fishing. Visitors may rent or buy canoes and kayaks from Belgrade Canoe & Kayak. Boat sales, rentals and marine services are provided by area marinas including Clark Marine in Manchester and Lakeside Motel and Marina in East Winthrop. Public boat landings located on the Kennebec River can be found in Augusta, Hallowell, Gardiner and Richmond, as well as on larger lakes in the region. White water rafting along the upper Kennebec and other rivers is organized by rafting companies within the area such as North Country Rivers.

The Capital Area Recreation Association complex between Hospital Street and Cony Road (beside the Arboretum) offers venues for soccer, baseball, softball, basketball, horseshoes and walking/hiking/jogging.

The City of Augusta maintains popular Bicentennial Park, a recreation and swimming area on a city pond for Augusta residents.

Outdoor swimming pools are located at three area playgrounds and at area hotels/motels including Senator Inn & Spa, Fairway Motor Lodge, Best Western Plus Civic Center Inn and Quality Inn & Suites Maine Evergreen Hotel. Indoor swimming pools are located at Senator Inn & Spa, Comfort Inn, Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott, Hampton Inn Augusta and Kennebec Valley YMCA. The Kennebec Valley YMCA, with its two facilities (Augusta and Manchester) offers two pools, fitness centers/indoor tracks, group exercise studios, racquetball, open gym, child watch services and a variety of programs that serve all ages, infants to seniors. Other health clubs include UMA and Flight II Fitness. Other indoor sports offered within the Capital Area include ice skating at the Bank of Maine Ice Vault, candlepin bowling and 10-pin bowling at Sparetime Recreation.

The Capital Area also hosts seven outdoor tennis courts, six public golf courses, one private golf course, Augusta Country Club, and numerous parks, playgrounds and athletic fields. Miniature golf is offered within the area at T’s Golf. Capital Area residents and visitors also frequent our 10-theater cinema and nightly Beano played at various halls and churches throughout our communities.

New Nordic Center: Augusta has developed a new Nordic ski complex with separate trails for other recreation activities on a large 160-acre forested tract in the center of the Capital.

Cultural Arts Abound
Cultural opportunities within the Capital Area include Shakespearean plays performed at the Theater at Monmouth throughout the summer and concerts performed by the Kennebec Performing Arts and the Augusta Symphony Orchestra, plus year-round performances at the Waterville Opera House. Other venues for performing arts include Johnson Hall in Gardiner, Gaslight Theater in Hallowell, the University of Maine at Augusta and new state-of-the-art facilities at Cony High and Winthrop High School.

Senior Citizen Assistance
General information is available from the Bureau of Elder & Adult Services, State House Station 11, Augusta, Maine 04333 Phone: (207) 287-9200 or 1 800-262-2232 or call Spectrum Generations, One Weston Court, Augusta, Maine 04330, Phone: (207) 622-9212 or 1-800-639-1553.

Shopping
Each community in the Capital Area offers its own unique downtown shopping experience. Visit the varied selection of large stores or a growing number of small to mid-size specialty shops. Your shopping experience will include visiting several shopping centers, mini-malls and traditional Main Street settings of the downtown business districts.

The 1.3 million-square-foot Marketplace at Augusta features more than 30 nationally-known retailers (including Wal-Mart, Sam’s, Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Home Depot, Gap, Old Navy, Kohl’s, Dick’s Sporting, etc). The new Augusta Crossing shopping center opened in late 2007 with Lowe’s, Target, Best Buy, Staples, etc. Other larger shopping centers include the Turnpike Mall, Augusta Plaza and Shaw’s Plaza. Whatever your shopping pleasure, you are sure to discover it in the Capital Area.

Taxation
The tax structure of Maine is comprised of state and local taxes. The state collects retail sales and use taxes, income taxes and business-related taxes. At the local level, real estate, personal property and excise taxes are collected. Additional detailed information may be obtained from municipal offices or from the Bureau of Taxation, State House Station 24, Augusta, Maine 04333-0024. Phone: (207) 287-2076

Transportation
Interstate 95, the backbone of highway transportation in Maine, serves the Capital Area. In addition, many other major highways converge in the Capital, helping to make it a true center of commerce and travel.

Portland and Bangor are about one hour’s drive away, and Boston is less than a three-hour drive.

Cape Air provides scheduled flight service to Boston and beyond from the Augusta State Airport. Charter air service and flight instruction courses are available from Maine Instrument Flight.

Augusta has a variety of trucking firms, which offer freight service to the area.

Vermont Transit buses serve Augusta; Kennebec Explorer provides local public bus transportation and rental cars are available at Hertz car rental, located at Augusta State Airport, and at several automobile dealers. Concord Trailways bus company recently opened a major transportation hub in Augusta providing direct transport to Boston.

Augusta’s Cushnoc Crossing bridge over the Kennebec River provides convenience for the city’s 25,000 daily commuters, as well as for the millions of trips annually to and from our nearby coastal regions.

Utilities
Central Maine Power provides the area with electric service. FairPoint Communications is the new primary provider of landline telephone service, although several local independent companies also serve the area. Cell phone companies include U. S. Cellular, Verizon Wireless and

T-Mobile. Time Warner Cable provides the region with cable television, high-speed Internet and digital phone service. The Capital Area is served by a number of gas and oil dealers. The availability of municipal water and sewer systems varies from community to community. Maine Natural Gas plans to construct a natural gas pipeline to Augusta, while Kennebec Valley Gas Company is planning a regional pipeline to serve the Capital Area communities and large industrial users to the north.

Welcoming/Greeting Service
If you are new to the Capital Area and would like an information package from Newcomer Relocation Services, please call Ramona Venskus at (207) 622-4312.

Worship
The Capital Area offers many places of worship for nearly every faith. With so many religious denominations represented, you are sure to find a very warm welcome in the house of worship of your choice.

IMMEDIATE ROI EXCLUSIVE TO
2012 PUBLICATION ADVERTISERS

MaineGeneral Health
www.mainegeneral.org