Orleans panel convenes to catalog code, fire, and health issues at Route 28 property

ORLEANS — January 21, 2026 — Orleans site plan committee reviews decades of accumulated code issues at a five-unit Route 28 mixed-use property. The committee met informally Wednesday with Dennis Talbot, owner of the three-building complex at 35 South Orleans Road, in a session the chair described as an effort to "codify" what the town needs from the property rather than to approve any new development. Building Commissioner Davis told Talbot that a commercial fire alarm system — agreed to after joint inspections by the building, fire, and health departments — is 80 percent installed but stalled because one tenant has refused access; Davis suggested activating the system for the other four units and retail space rather than waiting. Davis also reminded Talbot that all permitted work on the commercial property must be done by a licensed contractor, and said he would distribute a late-2025 code deficiency letter to the full committee. Health department representative Meredith confirmed an approved sewer application is in the installation phase at 745 gallons per day, and requested formal floor plans because town records show only one two-bedroom apartment and 7,000 square feet of retail — not the five apartments and multiple commercial spaces actually present on the site.