296 Eastern Ave
Augusta, ME 04330
Upgraded Construction Dollar General · Retail Property For Sale

Augusta is located along the 170 mile long Kennebec River, is the state capital of Maine and the most eastern state capital in the United States. While American Indians lived in the Augusta area for centuries, the first European settlers set down roots in the early 1600s. Colonies came and went for decades, driven away by Maine’s harsh winters. The first permanent settlement was when Kennebec Proprietors built Fort Western in 1754. Augusta’s streets and buildings today bear the names of many of those early residents, while Fort Western has been restored as a historic site and the oldest wooden fort remaining in New England. Augusta thrived through the 1800s and early 1900s, seeing the birth of a steamboat line, railroad service, gas street lamps and other developments. Manufacturing thrived, with wood and paper products, textiles and shoes flowing down the Kennebec River and along rail lines to the rest of the country. As the capital of Maine and seat of state government, Augusta is Maine’s largest location for government employment; state government employs several thousand Augustans. Governmental activities are supported by financial institutions, law firms, and economic and governmental liaison consultants. While the State of Maine itself remains by far Augusta’s largest employer, other industries in the city have shifted and shuttered as the economy evolved. In the past several decades, Augusta has labored to reinvent itself. Blue collar manufacturing jobs have started to be replaced by high-tech and health jobs. Health care institutions in the region also account for a large share of service sector employment, especially MaineGeneral Medical Center, which employs 1,738 at its campuses in Augusta and nearby Waterville. Augusta is the site of a number of private sector employers with significant bases in the city, such as Central Maine Power Company, an electric utility that serves more than 560,000 customers throughout the state; and SCI Systems, which produces computer peripheral equipment. New high-tech jobs are emerging - Microdyne, a technology services company, has a technical support and help desk service center in Augusta. Additionally, Augusta’s central location has made it a major regional distribution center. Significant warehousing/distribution activity is evident within the commercial base of the community. Augusta is situated near several popular vacation areas, and tourism is another significant source of revenue. Augusta has always been one of the state’s retail hubs. In recent years, retail sales in the city have increased more than in the state as a whole during the same period. The city is also working to redevelop its historic downtown waterfront area, with abandoned mills converted to new uses and a dam removed to bring wildlife back to the Kennebec River. Augusta is well known for outdoor recreation, including bicycle riding, canoeing, fishing, hiking, and home to some of the best golf courses in the state. Boasting not only a robust economic environment, Augusta is home to the third largest university in the University of Maine System with approximately 6,200 students at UMA.