GORHAM – A new market is set to open next month in a historic store in bustling downtown Gorham, a village saddled with parking problems the town is trying to resolve.

Holly Carter, a Gorham resident, plans to open Carter’s Green Market, at 12 Main St., sometime in June. The store will specialize in local produce, natural and organic foods, vitamins and nutritional supplements along with artisan wine and craft beer.

Carter had a booth at the recent CommUNITY Gorham and sought suggestions and is pleased with the public reaction.

“I’m definitely getting good feedback from the people,” Carter said last week.

Carter is now office manager for a Gorham business, Carter’s Auto Service, her husband Doug Carter owns on Railroad Avenue. They have two daughters, Lauren, a Gorham High School junior, and Jamie, a middle school student.

While already busy, Holly Carter is opening her own business in the leased Main Street space. She plans to initially hire four part-time employees.

She’s readying her market to open in a former vacant store between H & R Block and Brave Soul Studios, a tattoo parlor. The village is noted for traffic congestion, especially during rush hours with thousands of commuters.

Patrons at several downtown shops, restaurants and dance schools compete for on-street parking that includes a half-dozen spots outside 12 Main St. But the parking crunch didn’t deter Carter from deciding to open a market.

“I wish the parking was a little better,” Carter said. “We’re hoping the town might supply parking across the street.”

The Town Council on May 7 appropriated $15,000 to find answers for village parking woes.

“The town is soliciting proposals from consultants to do a village parking study. The proposals are due June 7,” Town Manager David Cole said last week.

Last year, the town, with an eye on adding downtown parking lots, purchased two houses in the village with one of the houses at 21 Main St. across from Carter’s market. But the town hasn’t razed either property and is renting out one home.

“I think the council has been holding off on the property the town acquired to wait for the results of the parking study,” Cole said.

But, Carter believes her customers will locate a place to park. The town dressed up downtown with new sidewalks in recent years to make the village more pedestrian friendly. Carter said her friends say they’ll walk to her market.

The market will sell specialty items unavailable elsewhere in Gorham. Little River Flower Farm in Buxton will be supplying vegetables, strawberries and floral bouquets for the market. Carter is talking with farmers about homegrown meats and the market will feature pastries, cookies and bread.

Coffee will be available, but Carter doesn’t plan on serving food on the premises.

“I think I’ve found really good products to offer and a good group of distributors,” she said.

The quaint store has a tin ceiling and has been freshly painted. Longtime Gorham natives will remember when it housed Edgar Carswell’s Drug Store that sold candy and ice cream.

Tom Ellsworth, director of Gorham Economic Development Corp., said occupying the previously vacant store will make the village more vibrant and will help other businesses.

“The windows were clouded and now it’s going to be bright and inviting,” Ellsworth said.

Ellsworth said Gorham does have a parking problem in the village.

“It’s tight parking all over Gorham,” Carter said.

Carter’s customers could find parking along nearby School Street or on South Street across the busy intersection of routes 25 and 114. In a step to ease downtown parking, Gorham recently limited the 18 or 20 spaces in front of Robie Gym on South Street to two-hour parking.

The Art Guru, Jeremy Greene’s former art supply store, was a previous tenant at 12 Main St.

“I was there from 2008-20011. And yes, parking is a problem in downtown Gorham,” Greene said. “Even if there were spaces available during most times of the day, the perception was that it will be hard to find a parking space so people would wait to go into Portland or just not bother.”

Greene said the town painted lines and repaved the center.

“But there are times when parking is just too difficult and people will just drive straight through town than bother searching for those out of the way spaces that us locals know about,” Greene said.

The trek from Gorham to Portland to shop at markets inspired Carter to open her own.

“My husband gave me a little push and here I am,” she said.

Holly Carter plans to open her store, Carter’s Green Market, June at 12 Main St. in Gorham Village.