[Added 10-3-2017; amended 3-6-2018; 7-5-2022; 4-4-2023 by Ord. No. 23-61]
[Amended 8-5-2025 by Ord. No. 25-82]
The purpose of the Agricultural/Industrial District is to provide areas within the Town of Gorham for agricultural uses to occur in close proximity to manufacturing, processing, treatment, research, warehousing and distribution; and to which end all the performance standards set forth in this Land Use and Development Code shall apply.
[Amended 8-5-2025 by Ord. No. 25-82; 10-7-2025 by Ord. No. 25-108]
The following are permitted uses in the Agricultural/Industrial District:
A. 
Manufacturing, processing and treatment.
B. 
Warehousing.
C. 
Road and rail distribution facilities.
D. 
Research facilities.
E. 
Wholesale businesses and wholesale business establishments, but excluding junkyards.
F. 
Accessory uses and buildings, including retail and service uses accessory to another permitted use, and also including a caretaker unit for residential use, provided that for nonagricultural buildings and uses there shall be no more than one residential unit on a property and such unit shall be resided in by an owner of the property, an employee of the industrial operation, or a person who serves as a security person. Agricultural buildings and uses are allowed to have up to three accessory residential units located on any of the farm parcel(s) in addition to the farmhouse. In the event that the principal industrial or agricultural use or other permitted use terminates, then the accessory use, except for a residential use accessory to agricultural buildings and uses, shall also terminate. The three accessory residential units for agricultural buildings and uses are allowed to remain.
G. 
Municipal and governmental uses.
H. 
Public utility facilities, including substations, pumping stations and sewage treatment plants.
I. 
Agricultural buildings and uses.
J. 
Facilities for the processing of agriculture products.
K. 
Agriculturally related business uses, including machinery sales and service, seed and fertilizer sales, and similar uses.
L. 
Food processing less than 12,000 square feet.
M. 
Retail stores less than 12,000 square feet.
N. 
Park and playground.
O. 
Mobile vending units.
P. 
Office of contractor or tradesperson.
Q. 
Indoor recreation facility.
R. 
Outdoor recreation facility.
S. 
Commercial food production.
A. 
Standards.
(1) 
Minimum area of lot: 40,000 square feet.
(2) 
Minimum street frontage: 100 feet.
(3) 
Minimum front yards: 30 feet; except where the front yard abuts a residential use or district, in which case a minimum of 50 feet shall be provided.
(4) 
Minimum side and rear yards: 20 feet;* except as otherwise required by the buffer provisions of this Land Use and Development Code and except where the side and/or rear yards abut a residential use or district, in which case a minimum of 30 feet or 50% of the building or outdoor stored material height, whichever is greater, shall be required.
B. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of this § 300-1.120, an auxiliary public utility structure is exempt from the minimum lot size and street frontage requirements of this district. Structures must meet setback requirements. Additional screening and buffering can be requested by the Planning Board.
The general performance standards contained in Part 2 of this Land Use and Development Code shall be fully observed.
A. 
All land shall have a "perimeter setback" of 100 feet along Main Street and/or 75 feet along Mosher Road. The Planning Board may reduce the perimeter setback by up to 50% if it finds that doing so would result in a better plan of development for the project site.
(1) 
No portion of the perimeter setback shall be used for storage of equipment or inventory, service and loading, parking or any buildings or structures. All access roads and utilities may cross the perimeter setback to provide access to and from a street but shall be designed to minimize the disruption of the perimeter setback. No direct access to parking stalls shall be provided from an access road located within the perimeter setback.
(2) 
A landscaped buffer area, as provided in Subsection A(3) below, shall be designed and maintained within the "perimeter setback."
(3) 
A detailed landscaping plan, prepared by a landscape architect, shall be prepared for the landscaped buffer area and submitted as part of site plan review for all lots with a perimeter setback. The landscaped buffer area shall be designed to provide effective visual and auditory buffering from abutting residential properties, create an attractive appearance for the proposed new development and maintain an attractive gateway to Gorham consistent with the goals and objectives of the Town of Gorham Comprehensive Plan. Existing natural features and vegetation may be incorporated into the plan for the buffer area if they are found to create an effective visual and auditory buffer by the Planning Board. All such buffer areas shall be maintained for the life of the project.
B. 
Fencing, screening, landscaped berms, natural features, or combination thereof, shall be utilized to shield from the view of abutting residential properties and public ways all loading and unloading operations, storage and repair work areas, commercial vehicle parking and waste disposal and collection areas.
C. 
Building and other structure requirements. Building(s) shall be located on the property with the principal building entrance oriented toward the primary focal point of the property/development.
(1) 
Customer entrances. The customer entrance(s) shall be clearly defined and highly visible by using features such as canopies, porticos, overhangs, recesses/projection, raised corniced parapets over the door, arcades, arches or wing walls. Integral planter boxes are highly encouraged.
(2) 
Roof design. Roofs shall be designed to reduce the apparent exterior mass of a building, add visual interest and be appropriate to the architectural style of the building. The following design elements are highly encouraged: variations within one architectural style; visible roof lines and roofs that project over the exterior wall of a building enough to cast a shadow on the ground; and overhanging eaves, sloped roofs and multiple roof elements. Architectural methods shall be used to conceal flat roof tops.
(3) 
Building and other structure materials.
(a) 
The predominant exterior building materials shall be of high-quality materials, including, but not limited to, brick, sandstone, wood, native stone and tinted/textured concrete masonry units and/or glass products. Simulated material may be substituted for any of the aforementioned building materials.
(b) 
At least three different building materials shall be used for the primary facade of a building facing the primary street the building fronts. The Planning Board may waive the building material to two different materials if it finds the building design has enough architectural detail to sufficiently break up the massing of the building. Buildings on corner lots shall be considered to have two primary facades. Any side of the building facing Main Street shall also be considered a primary facade. Glass for use in windows and doors shall not be considered one of the required building materials.
(c) 
Exterior building materials shall not include smooth-faced concrete block, tilt-up concrete panels or T-111. Prefabricated steel panels are excluded unless they contain architectural details with intricate designs. Metal roof may be allowed if compatible with the overall architectural design of the building.
(4) 
Building and other structure colors. Exterior colors shall be of low-reflectance, subtle, neutral or muted earthtone colors. The use of high-intensity colors such as black, neon, metallic or fluorescent colors for the facade and/or roof of the building are prohibited except as approved for building trim.
(5) 
Mechanical equipment, outdoor storage and service areas. The location of loading docks, outdoor storage yards and all other service areas shall be to the sides or rear of a building, except when a site abuts either Main Street/State Route 25 or Mosher Road/State Route 237, in which case the areas shall be located to the sides of the building that do not face Main Street/State Route 25 or Mosher Road/State Route 237.
(a) 
All outdoor storage yards, loading docks, service areas and mechanical equipment or vents larger than eight inches in diameter shall be concealed by screens at least as high as the equipment they hide, of a color and material matching or compatible with the dominant colors and materials found on the facades of the principal building. Chain link or cyclone fencing (with or without slats) shall not be used to satisfy this requirement.
(b) 
Equipment that would remain visible despite the screening, due to differences in topography (i.e., a site that is at a lower grade than surrounding roadways) shall be completely enclosed except for vents needed for air flow, in which event such vents shall occupy no more than 25% of the enclosure facade.
(c) 
The architectural design of the buildings shall incorporate design features which screen, contain and conceal all heating, ventilation, air conditioning units, trash enclosures, dumpsters, loading docks and service yards.