[Amended 8-5-2025 by Ord. No. 25-82]
The purpose of the Industrial District is to provide areas within the Town of Gorham for 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 3-6-2018; 7-7-2020; 4-6-2021; 7-5-2022; 8-2-2022; 8-5-2025 by Ord. No. 25-82; 10-7-2025 by Ord. No. 25-108]
The following are permitted uses in the Industrial District:
A. 
Manufacturing, processing and treatment.
B. 
Warehousing and outdoor storage.
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 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. In the event that the principal industrial use or other permitted use terminates, then the accessory residential use shall also terminate.
G. 
Municipal and governmental uses.
H. 
Public utility facilities, including substations, pumping stations and sewage treatment plants.
I. 
Mineral extraction.
J. 
Mobile vending units.
K. 
Cannabis cultivation or manufacturing facility.
L. 
Medical cannabis business.
M. 
Office of contractor or tradesperson.
N. 
Heavy machinery and equipment retail sales and services.
O. 
Indoor recreation facility.
P. 
Outdoor recreation facility.
Q. 
Commercial food production.
A. 
Standards.
(1) 
Minimum area of lot: None.*
(2) 
Minimum area per dwelling unit.*
(3) 
Minimum street frontage: None.*
(4) 
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.
(5) 
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.
(6) 
Maximum building height: None.
(7) 
Maximum building coverage: None.*
*
Except that space standards for residential uses shall be the same as for the Suburban Residential and Rural Districts.
B. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of this § 300-1.62, 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 and the following additional standards shall be required of uses within this district:
A. 
There shall be no new access or curb cuts to Main Street, Libby Avenue or New Portland Road from any lots in the Industrial District, when an alternative access exists as of November 30, 1998; provided, however, if no such alternative exists then there can be only one access or curb cut per lot in existence at the date of adoption of this article. The Planning Board may allow additional access points onto Main Street or New Portland Road if the developer demonstrates that additional access would provide for better traffic circulation and improved traffic safety, without reducing the level of service on the main travel way.
B. 
Except where it abuts existing industrial zoned land, all land zoned industrial after November 30, 1998, shall have a perimeter setback of 100 feet, which shall be subject to the restrictions set out below. 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. Subject to Subsection A above, 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 B(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.
C. 
Fencing, screening, landscaped berms, natural features, or a combination thereof, shall be utilized to shield from the view of abutting residential properties and public ways, along the perimeter setback of the Industrial District, all loading and unloading operations, storage and repair work areas, commercial vehicle parking, and waste disposal and collection areas.