David Smith

The class action lawsuit filed by campers against the past and present owners of Westward Shores and the Town of Ossipee tops the list of 2018's lake news stories.

A long-simmering dispute over zoning enforcement and sales practices at Westward Shores has come to a head with a lawsuit filed in State Superior Court by more than 70 campers against the Town of Ossipee and the current and previous owners of the big lake business. The group has asked the court to 'grandfather' their camping units for zoning purposes, and is seeking monetary damages from current campground owner Northgate Ossipee, and two previous owners, Anthony Aversa and Joan Brassil.

The September 14 decision found that a Superior Court judge erred last year by ruling in favor of the Town of Effingham after the children's camp sued it for denying its annual application to qualify for a charitable tax exemption. While the ruling focuses on a decision made by the town in 2015, the tax dispute between the camp and the town has deeper roots.

At an Alliance forum on August 25, Jim Gallagher, the state's chief engineer, detailed plans for a major reconstruction of the Ossipee River dam complex starting in the spring of 2019. The DES official fielded an array of questions during the hour-long meeting, ranging from water levels to historic preservation to fish ladders.

Major Work planned for the Ossipee River Dam next year will likely alleviate flooding to some extent. But because of the geography of the lake, Mother Nature will remain a wild card. This is the last of the articles in our series leading up to the state's public presentation of its plan to replace the dam next year. The meeting is this Saturday, August 25, at 10 a.m. in Freedom Town Hall.