BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 15, 2023
Downtowns like Augusta lost their role as a regional center of retail, community and neighborhood as the banks and department stores that drew people together moved to the suburbs. In the early 2000s, the tide began to reverse as a new generation of people formed households and wanted to be close to work, shops and entertainment. Ten new restaurants have opened in downtown Augusta in the last five years. The city has used Tax Increment Financing funds to incentivize investors to develop upper floor apartments, which can be used to subsidize businesses and retail on the first floor. More than 100 market-rate apartments have been added in the last 10 years. Augusta also will receive a $1.7 million federal earmark to renovate the Colonial Theater into a multi-functional arts center that will become the center of the downtown arts and entertainment district.