York County, Maine
Licensed, insured electrical work for Kennebunk homes and businesses, with the owner on every job.
Kennebunk runs from the blueberry fields of the Kennebunk Plains and West Kennebunk down through the Main Street historic district to Lower Village and the beaches at Gooch's and Mother's. About 11,800 people live here, in houses that range from Federal-era homes built in the shipbuilding years to subdivisions from the 1980s and 1990s. The town also has its own consumer-owned electric utility. Goodnow Electric, a licensed Maine master electrician based in Westbrook, handles panels, generators, EV chargers, wiring and lighting here.
Census figures put Kennebunk's median year built at 1983, but that average hides two very different towns. About 19 percent of homes went up before 1940 and roughly 30 percent before 1960, most of them in the village center, where the Kennebunk Historic District holds high-style houses from the late 1700s and early 1800s. Another 32 percent were built between 1980 and 1999. Older houses here were wired decades after they were framed, so it is common to open a wall and find cloth-covered cable, two-prong outlets with no ground, or a 60 or 100 amp service that was never meant for modern loads. About 12 percent of homes sit in buildings of two to four units, many of them large village houses converted to apartments, where shared meter banks and aging feeders need attention.
Heating oil is still the main fuel in Kennebunk, used by about 56 percent of occupied homes according to the Census. Propane heats about 18 percent, electricity about 15 percent and utility gas about 9 percent. That mix means many households are one heat pump decision away from a much larger electric load, since every outdoor unit needs its own 240-volt circuit and cold-climate systems draw the most on the coldest nights. EV charging adds to it: the town put a free two-hose charger behind the Washington Hose fire station in Lower Village with an Efficiency Maine grant, and the Kennebunk service plazas on the Maine Turnpike each host eight Tesla Superchargers.
Kennebunk Light & Power District traces back to December 1893, when the town bought the turbine rights at the Kesslen Shoe Factory on the Mousam River to light its streets. Voters made it an independent, consumer-owned district in 1951, and today it keeps a round-the-clock outage line and contracts tree trimming along its lines. On January 10 and 13, 2024, back-to-back storms and a record tide caused roughly $2 million in damage to Kennebunk roads, sidewalks and beach infrastructure, and fire officials urged people near the water to move to upper floors. A standby generator or a transfer switch for a portable unit keeps heat, well pumps and sump pumps running when lines come down.
The Kennebunk Historic District, listed on the National Register in 1974, covers much of the town center, including the Brick Store Museum's block of commercial buildings dating from 1810 to 1860. On Summer Street stands the Wedding Cake House, the 1825 George W. Bourne House whose Gothic buttresses and trim were added by hand after a barn fire in 1852. Inland, the Lower Alewive Historic District preserves four farms laid out in the 1750s. Lower Village sits across the Kennebunk River from Dock Square, and the Mousam River once turned the water wheels and turbines that ran the town's factories and its first street lights.
Kennebunk issues its own electrical permits. The Code Enforcement office takes building, electrical and plumbing applications through its online iWorQ portal, and its officers review applications and conduct inspections. The same officers administer shoreland zoning and floodplain management, which matters for generators and outdoor equipment near the rivers and beaches. Inside the Historic Preservation Overlay District, the Historic Preservation Commission must issue a certificate of appropriateness before a new exterior light or fixture goes on a building. Statewide, installations begun on or after July 1, 2026 follow the 2026 National Electrical Code as adopted by the Electricians' Examining Board.
Commercial, solar, smart home and new construction work are covered on our full list of electrical services.
Close to Kennebunk, we also work in Kennebunkport, Arundel, Wells, Lyman, Sanford, and Alfred. Every town we serve is listed on our service area page.
Homeowners here often read why LED lighting upgrades pay back fastest, electrical planning for a new home in Southern Maine, and whole-house vs. portable generators for Maine homes.
More resources: answers to common electrical questions, our generator sizing guide, and electrical tips and guides for Maine homeowners.
“Brett was super responsive when we called. He had John out to our house 48 hours later! Brett and John were both very friendly and John did excellent work! Would highly recommend Goodnow Electric and will use them again when needed. 10/10!”
Gina McCurdy • July 2025 • Google Review
Tell us what you need done and where; a licensed electrician will reply with a written quote.
