Ossipee selectmen, volunteers to meet after questions raised about Constitution Park boardwalk code compliance

Selectmen and volunteers for Constitution Park agreed to arrange a posted, on‑site meeting with the contractor after town officials told the group the park’s recently completed boardwalk must meet state building code requirements and receive a certificate of occupancy.

The town’s building inspector said the structure must be built to the International Building Code (IBC) 2021 standard and that RSA 155‑A and ADA requirements apply; he told the group that those rules leave no exemption for municipal projects. "The boardwalk ... is required to be built to the building code, the IBC 2021. There is no exemption to that," the building inspector said during public comment. He said the contractor is responsible for calling inspections and obtaining the permit and certificate of occupancy.

Volunteers and project representatives said they were surprised to receive formal notice of code issues after construction finished. One project representative said the group had relied on U.S. Forest Service guidance and on a contractor who has built similar trails for years. "We used the Forest Service interpretation, which is what this contractor has used for many years," the representative said. Another volunteer who handled permitting for the project said she had believed the project specifications and contract language referenced Forest Service ADA provisions and that the first notice about the building code requirement came only recently.

Selectmen and volunteers agreed a meeting should include the building inspector, town staff, members of the volunteer board, and the contractor, Sam Brinkley. The group discussed holding the meeting within the next one to two weeks and that the session will need to be a scheduled, posted meeting. No change to code requirements was promised; the building inspector repeated that state code obligations stand regardless of grant or volunteer status.

The town also noted that certain grant terms referenced by volunteers require compliance with codes; the building inspector said the CO (certificate of occupancy) must be issued once code compliance is demonstrated. Volunteers emphasized they want the project to remain an asset to the town and said they will work with the town to address any items the inspector identifies.

The selectmen indicated they do not intend to block the park’s grand opening but said unresolved inspections and outstanding permit work must be completed on the contractor’s schedule and in accordance with state code.

The board directed staff to schedule the posted site meeting and to invite the contractor, who may appear in person or by phone.