The deadline for applications is 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21.

The council voted 5-2 to refer to the Planning Board a request by Ware Butler to rezone 74 Pleasant St. to allow business offices in the former Sacred Heart Church rectory.

The Municipal Review Committee ended its exclusivity agreement with New York-based Revere Capital Partners to help operate and partially own the Municipal Waste Solutions plant when it did not meet deadlines for submitting an engineering report and other documents.

Two people who run the Accountability For All channel on YouTube conducted a "First Amendment audit" at Waterville city offices last month during stops across Maine, claiming that Mayor Jay Coelho's videos on TikTok are unprofessional.

The Kennebec Water District received four reports of water main breaks in Waterville and Winslow on Saturday and all have been repaired, according to superintendent Roger Crouse, who said it is "extremely rare" to have four breaks in one day.

Hundreds of self-proclaimed nerds from across the state gathered Sunday for the Maine Sci-Fi & Fantasy Nerd Fest at The Olde Mill Place, where they showed off their costumes, socialized, shopped and competed in events.

Proceeds will help the elderly with heat and electric bills.

Reservations are required and must be made by Saturday, Feb. 11.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Jan. 27-Feb. 3, 2023.

Waterville-based Delta says various financial pressures are driving up expenses, forcing the nonprofit to propose the fee for the 14 central Maine towns it serves.

The heat gun was left atop a pallet of combustible materials inside a walk-in freezer, leading to the fire Thursday that damaged offices and a production area at Gifford's Famous Ice Cream, according to Skowhegan fire Chief Ronnie Rodriguez.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

Wearing proper foot gear this time of year can mean the difference between a safe trek to the mailbox and a painful ride to the hospital, Amy Calder writes.

After earlier warmer temperatures postponed their efforts, Amish workers spent Thursday carving blocks of ice from a farm pond for storage in icehouses to keep produce and other foods cold for the months ahead.

Exhibit on display through end of February.

A company official said the fire began Thursday morning in a processing area where milk and cream are mixed for the company's well-known ice cream.

As Maine braces for a cold snap this week, residents across the state are readying for frigid temperatures expected to plunge to minus 20 by the weekend.

The fire early Wednesday is believed to have started when smoldering wood ash ignited wood chips on a conveyor belt in the plant, according to Waterville fire Chief Shawn Esler.

Anson fire Chief Stacey Beane said after the dog and its owner escaped the flames early Wednesday on Embden Pond Road, the pet went back inside through an open door and perished.

Some of the ideas Tuesday for the park on the banks of the Kennebec River were to add a play area for dogs, a footbridge to downtown and a longer loop trail.

Buen Apetito, a mainstay in the Waterville restaurant scene for two decades, can now be found at 99 West River Road after a dispute over parking led to its departure from the Railroad Square complex.

Workers were renovating a building at 72 Armory Road for the new SweetFrog location, when someone stole power tools last week from inside the building.

Business owners have largely praised downtown improvements and the new two-way traffic pattern, but city officials say some tweaks may be in order for the intersection adjacent to the Ticonic Bridge.

The town is one of 17 municipalities in the state to receive the award for meeting workplace safety standards set by the state Department of Labor.

Justin Boucher, 21, accused of repeatedly stabbing a 65-year-old man Jan. 18, entered his plea last week at an Augusta courtroom.

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Lyon welcomed residents to the Saint Joseph's Nature Sanctuary on Saturday morning for a guided nature walk through the winter foliage.

Justin Boucher, 21, appears to have attacked a 65-year-old man because he believed the older man had assaulted a family member, a Winslow police investigator said Friday.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Jan. 20-27, 2023.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

Christa McAuliffe was 37 and a popular teacher from New Hampshire when she and six others died in the space shuttle Challenger explosion on Jan. 28, 1986, Amy Calder writes.

The two cities were among the top 10 in Maine, and the two most northern communities, for largest increases in median sale prices for homes from 2021 to 2022.

The most recent storm to move into the region left about 6 inches of snow in places such as Jackman and Manchester, but when people got up Thursday morning the totals had diminished due to the following rain.

As part of the plan, buildings at the corner of Temple and Front streets, as well as a former office building at the corner of Appleton and Front, would be razed and two buildings initially constructed in their place.

Family and friends of Dustin Allard said the 21-year-old was ambitious and wanted "to make a difference in the lives of others."

No one was hurt in the blaze Tuesday morning on Pleasant View Ridge Road, according to a fire official.

The 13 students participating in the aviation course said they learned not only how to fly as part of the program, but also how small airports are critical to local economies, and how aviation relates to an array of business opportunities.

The festival-like event will be held Feb. 3-5 at Snow Pond Center for the Arts in Sidney.

Crowds of all ages took to the trails to cross country ski Saturday and children took lessons in alpine skiing and how to use the rope tow to ascend the hill at Quarry Road.

Brian Charette, 43, of Oakland, was being held Saturday in Kennebec County jail in Augusta, awaiting arraignment by a judge on Monday, according to Waterville interim police Chief Bill Bonney.

Somerset County Sheriff Dale Lancaster said a sheriff's detective suffered minor injuries Thursday when Cody Mosher, 28, fled in his car as authorities attempted to take him into custody in Skowhegan.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Jan. 13-20, 2023.

Davina Petchonka and Charles H. Frost, believed to now be residents of Pittsfield, were arrested Dec. 1 and continue to be incarcerated at the Somerset County Jail in East Madison.

It was important to Paul J. Schupf that Waterville have an arts center in the heart of the city that is accessible to all, Amy Calder writes.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

An Augusta man and a Fairfield man were taken into custody over the weekend following a chase that began in Augusta, continued into Oakland and then concluded in Sidney, Maine State Police said Thursday.

The Winslow Community Cupboard used an $86,000 grant from Good Shepherd Food Bank to buy two refrigerated trailers, allowing it to take its services on the road to Clinton, Fairfield, Oakland, Skowhegan, Vassalboro and three locations in Waterville.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection said in a report to a legislative committee that testing of an increasing number of sites likely will continue beyond a 2025 deadline.

Police Chief Leonard Macdaid said a 21-year-old man was taken into custody Wednesday at a residence on Clinton Avenue following a brief chase.

Landlords and tenants packed the City Council chamber Tuesday night to urge councilors not to approve the proposed ordinance, saying it is burdensome, violates tenant privacy rights and discourages rental property investment at a time when housing is sorely needed in the city.

A Saturday fire engulfed a barn at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association's educational center in Unity.

Wilson, a vice president of Northern Light Medical Group, spoke to a virtual audience Monday at the Rotary Club of Waterville's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day breakfast.

Research has found that once a contamination source is removed from a farm, PFAS levels in livestock will drop to the point that products derived from the animals can be sold to consumers, officials said at a public forum last week.

The university has received a gift from Sam and Charlotte Goos of Alton, New Hampshire; Sam hails from the Augusta area.

The ordinance would require rental property owners to register with the city and provide emergency contact and other information, so police, fire and code officials could get into buildings quickly if there are problems.

Town councilors expressed concern recently the project to replace the Fish Bridge on Garland Road near the Benton town line will roughly coincide with another project to replace the Ticonic Bridge that connects Winslow and Waterville.

Proceeds benefit the Children’s Discovery Museum and Educare Central Maine.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Jan. 6-13, 2023.

The Elm at 21 College Ave. struggled during the coronavirus pandemic, but owner Bill Mitchell is in talks to repurpose the space and have a business relocate there.

Over the course of several months, Morning Sentinel photographer Michael G. Seamans captured images of people living at a homeless encampment along the Kennebec River, and came to learn his assumptions about them were wrong.

Those who interact most closely with the homeless say it's a misconception that they don't want to work or try to help themselves.

After two or three days of eating poorly, all it takes to feel better again is to consume a hot Maine potato, mashed, dabbed with butter and salt-and-peppered, Amy Calder writes.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

Program part of the library’s Leeke-Shaw Lecture on International Affairs.

Jarae Lipscombe, 26, was sentenced Thursday to serve three years in prison for lying to police and helping his brother avoid arrest after the 2020 shooting death of Joseph Tracy.

Police say a man assaulted a woman Thursday morning at a house on Boston Avenue.

The state last year tested more than 1,600 private wells seen as high-priority sites, and inspectors this year will test hundreds more for groundwater contamination.

Pamela Trinward, a lifelong Waterville resident, former state representative and 19-year member of the Board of Education, was elected Monday to chair the board, succeeding Joan Phillips-Sandy, who did not seek re-election in November.

Interim fire Chief Scott Bolduc told the Town Council this week that the Fire Department could transport patients to hospitals and other health facilities between Bangor and Portland as a way to help relieve overburdened emergency medical services.

Allen Cole Jr., 74, was ice fishing Friday afternoon with his dog when his snowmobile broke through the ice, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. It was the second such incident in a little more than a week in Maine.

The Waterville college is positioning itself to graduate an increasing number of information security analysts to fill available positions in a burgeoning, potentially lucrative field.

Chelsea Holt, 29, had part of her sentence suspended, but will be placed on sex offender registry for 25 years.

Churchill Elangwe-Preston, who is launching a micro-roasting company called Mbingo Mountain Coffee, said he wants "to create a light in somebody's life."

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Dec. 31, 2022-Jan. 6, 2023.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

Jennifer Johnson has worked with St. Nick for a couple of years to craft replies to letters left for Santa at the Waterville Post Office or at Kringleville in downtown Waterville.

Firefighters from several communities spent at least four hours Thursday battling the fire at the single-family house at 79 Back Deer Hill Road.

Thomas McKay, 36, and Jamie Witt, 29, were arrested Wednesday morning, he on drug trafficking charges and outstanding warrants from Maine and Massachusetts, and she on a charge of aggravated trafficking in a schedule W drug.

Heather Donahue and Howard Margolskee, both former councilors, were sworn in to their positions Tuesday.

The forum coincides with the Agricultural Trades Show Jan. 10-12 at the Augusta Civic Center.

Covering the ice storm of 1998 in the Waterville area seemed like being a war zone, Amy Calder writes.

The City Council appointed Assistant City Manager William Post as interim city manager Tuesday, after Steve Daly resigned abruptly from his position last month.

After a parking dispute pushed Buen Apetito out of its 20-year locale at Railroad Square, its owners eyed the location of Drip City, a bar and arcade on West River Road, as a new home.

Justin Murphy, 35, was arrested late Monday in Winslow and charged with robbery and theft in connection with the Circle K Irving station in Waterville earlier in the day, police said.

The woman, who has mental health issues, led police on a chase throughout the city early Monday before they stopped her on a dead-end road on the Colby College campus and took her into protective custody.

Several off-duty medical professionals stopped to help Saturday when a man backing up his pickup truck with plow at Marketplace Plaza on U.S. Route 1 fell out of the truck, which then drove over him, according to police.

The robbery occurred at 1:44 a.m. Monday at the business, located on Kennedy Memorial Drive, near Interstate 95.

Jeremiah Meader, 42, of Smithfield was driving his side-by-side UTV across the pond with his wife and two other adult passengers at about 1 a.m. Sunday when it broke through the ice, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife.

Police searched a vehicle late Saturday and early Sunday, seizing $10,700 in cash, 286 grams of heroin, cocaine and fentanyl and a handgun, in a case related to arrests and drug seizures Thursday and Friday.

Peter Hallen, assistant superintendent of Waterville Public Schools, said it is important to find those responsible for the graffiti, but having the schools and Waterville community address the issue is critical to spreading awareness and effecting change.

Five people were arrested and more than $9,000 worth of illegal drugs seized Friday in Skowhegan, according to police.

Bobbie Jo Dumas, 51, of Skowhegan was treated and released from the hospital following the crash Friday on Norridgewock Road in Fairfield, according to police.

Zacheriah Adams was taken into custody Wednesday on several charges. Several people previously accused him of taking thousands of dollars from them to perform home repair work before disappearing, but the charges are not related to those accusations.

Ashley Ann Ferris, who struggled as a single mother to provide for her three daughters, is the new owner of Waterville Florist & Formal Wear and is working with the founder, Jeff Karter, to expand its offerings.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Dec. 23-30, 2022.

The intersection where Bay Street meets China Road has flooded regularly for decades, and town officials hope $2.7 million in state money is at least a start toward improving drainage in the area and fixing the problem.

The woman who lived at the mobile home at 49 Chadwick Way in the Weeks Mills area of China was uninsured, a fire official said Thursday.

Councilors held a special meeting Wednesday at which they approved paying Steve Daly and giving him a health insurance reimbursement in a lump sum.

The farmers who received the Paul Birdsall Award from Maine Farmland Trust have been impacted by PFAS contamination and have spoken publicly about their experiences and advocated for more financial support for fellow farmers.

The council is expected Wednesday to discuss appointing Assistant City Manager Bill Post as interim city manager until a search for a new manager is launched and a candidate hired to succeed Steve Daly, who resigned abruptly last week.

The federal budget, approved by Congress last week and expected to go to President Joe Biden for his signature this week, includes funding for local projects ranging from the Colonial Theater in Augusta to a fire station in North Anson.

Police say the Dodge pickup was traveling at high speed Monday night on College Avenue when it left the road, snapped off a utility pole and crashed into the apartment building, causing what the building owner says is tens of thousands of dollars of damage.

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Lyon, a Roman Catholic convent in Winslow, are looking to their legacy. They have partnered with local horticulturalists to transform four acres along the Sebasticook River into a nature sanctuary, and have raised $20,000 toward their $36,000 goal.

Israel Parsons died Saturday night on Molunkus Road in Cornville, according to officials.

Volunteers at the Waterville Area Soup Kitchen welcome members of the community to the organization's first Christmas lunch at The Lighthouse.

Electricity was restored to nearly everyone in Kennebec County by Christmas Day after a weekend storm brought heavy rain and wind gusts that left about 300,000 customers in the dark across the state.

A massive storm that has rolled across the U.S. blew into central Maine on Friday with heavy rain and wind gusts up to 65 mph.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Dec. 17-23, 2022.

The Morning Sentinel's Rich Abrahamson needed to unload his collection of Christmas blow molds, and Danielle Gould was happy to take them since it meant she could grow her own collection and continue to spread Christmas cheer.

Steve Daly announced his resignation in a letter Thursday to city councilors after nearly two years on the job as Waterville's top municipal official.

Town officials are looking to transform Mill Island, once a vibrant industrial hub, into a popular recreational site, while honoring local history and addressing the needs of residents.

Diego Martinez, 31, of Massachusetts was arrested early Monday, capping a manhunt that lasted more than five weeks after he eluded police in Sabattus.

The town paid firefighters their full bonus amount this week and their union has dropped a labor complaint filed over the matter.

The agreement between Meyer Tool Inc. and B&B Precise Products Inc. is expected to allow B&B to raise capital for a $3 million, 15,000-square-foot expansion of its facility on Route 100 in Benton.

A resident of a home on Cindy Blodgett Drive told police he returned home Tuesday to find the suspects there and a dispute arose over money the men said they were owed.

The event is being held in Oakland for a second year and people will gather Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the gazebo at Oakland Waterfront Park.

Selectmen have questioned Town Manager Tim Curtis about the departure of the road commissioner and others, and one selectman claimed Curtis had 'secretly' hired a cousin for a municipal post, which Curtis denied.

The suspect stole an undisclosed amount of money Monday morning in a robbery that occurred less than two weeks after the Camden National Bank in downtown Waterville was robbed.

Although councilors have approved the municipal budget for 2023, they plan to alter the way discussions are held on individual department requests for funding.

The opening of the $18 million center, which included a preview reception Friday and a "Joy to the Ville" opening day event on Saturday in Waterville, drew a supportive crowd despite a major snowstorm across central Maine.

Saturday was the opening of the $18 million Paul J. Schupf Art Center in downtown Waterville and a day-long series of events were planned for families. Construction of the center lasted about a year and a half in the heart of downtown and the center is seen as a landmark destination for years to come featuring a variety of art and cultural offerings.

The Kennebec Regional Development Authority's general assembly convened Thursday and denied Rome's withdrawal from the organization and its affiliate, FirstPark in Oakland.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Dec. 9-16, 2022.

Ayla was reported missing Dec. 17, 2011, by her father, Justin DiPietro, from her grandmother's Violette Avenue home in Waterville, launching the most costly state police investigation in Maine history, and she has never been found.

The Augusta, Waterville and Skowhegan areas are expected to get 8 to 12 inches of snow by Saturday, according to the National Weather Service in Gray.

A clinical psychologist who's treating a psychotic, suicidal woman with leukemia stuck for weeks in a hospital emergency department says the state must expand existing psychiatric resources or build new, Amy Calder writes.

Eddie Rivera, 43, was driving a stolen 2001 Toyota Corolla when he led police on the chase Tuesday that began in Bangor, according to officials.

The Municipal Review Committee, which represents the municipal solid waste interests of 115 Maine communities, remains optimistic it will partner with Revere Capital Partners, a New York-based investment firm, early next year in owning and operating the plant.

A company executive told selectmen Tuesday that the footwear company now employs 250 people in Skowhegan and the expansion would add another 200 positions.

As part of the program Fairfield officers deliver Christmas gifts to children in town, but this year they'll also gather with families at the Fairfield Community Center to allow more opportunity to interact with the children.

Steve Kosmidis was enjoying his retirement when he learned that his former restaurant, Waterville House of Pizza, was struggling, so he and his son bought it back and it will reopen under their management Wednesday.

Buen Apetito, a popular eatery that has been in the Railroad Square complex off Chaplin Street for 20 years, is looking for another location following problems with parking and other matters.

The deadline to submit participation entries is Monday, Dec. 19.

A $2.4 million project to expand the school by adding four classrooms, utility space and bathrooms is expected to conclude in June.

The calls impacted 10 schools across Maine and are still under investigation by the Maine State Police and FBI.

Richard Murray-Burns was sentenced in March to decades in prison for the 2019 shooting and police chase that began in Waterville, but a judge's procedural error has led the court to reconsider the sentence.

Augusta- and Waterville-area arrests for Dec. 2-9, 2022.

Here are some of our favorite Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel photos from the past week.

There are cards to write, cookies to bake and presents to wrap, but then the stress seems to fall away and we're embraced by the joy of the Christmas season, Amy Calder writes.

Virgil White, 33, was being held on a domestic violence charge when he was pronounced dead Monday morning at the jail in Madison.

Maine becomes the first state to receive the funding as part of a federal push for broadband improvements meant to give every American access to high-speed internet service.

Community Ski Free Days are scheduled for Dec. 10, Jan. 7, Feb. 11.

An arrest warrant was issued Wednesday for Zacheriah Adams, the man accused by several people of failing to perform home repair projects after collecting thousands of dollars from them.

The budget is roughly a 7% increase compared to last year, but a rise in revenue means town officials expect the property tax rate to decrease for residents.

The Town Council on Tuesday approved the appointment of Vicente Morris, who succeeds Harold Bickmore.

The majority of city councilors Tuesday night said they needed more clarity on what proposed pay raises for patrol officers and commanding officers would mean for the long term before voting to approve them.

The wreck occurred Friday on state Route 23 and claimed the life of a 59-year-old man who authorities have not yet identified.