Nonconforming Lots, Structures, And Uses In Maine

A lawfully pre-existing nonconforming property is a use, structure, or lot that existed lawfully prior to the enactment of the zoning ordinance. These properties have to have been continuously maintained since the effective date of that ordinance, even though it doesn't meet the standards the ordinance for its particular zoning district. But what does this really mean?

Let's say you're looking to buy an old store located in a sea of tightly packed single-family homes in a gentrifying neighborhood just outside downtown - what better location for a fancy cheese shop or brewery, right? Or perhaps you see an advertisement in Uncle Henry's for a former campground on a cherished Maine lake now surrounded by homes straight out of Dwell Magazine on lots so big you don't have to feign niceties with your neighbor. So, besides being places this blogging attorney would rather be right now, what exactly do these hypothetical properties have in common?