i'd like to piggyback on this by asking why Gorham, literally right next door, is such a (seemingly) nicer town. they're both very remote and have little industry.

i had some work driving thru both towns and found Gorham super charming. I always thought they could complement each other nicely... Gorham the upscale town w nicer restaurants etc and Berlin the more industrial side but not "worse" per se, but each playing a role. there you'd have your nucleus for a nice little area.