Shelter Bay manager wades into his new position

While travel – especially on water – has long been a passion for new Shelter Bay manager Rick Tanner, the Idaho native is thankful to now lay his anchor in La Conner.

“La Conner is among the most beautiful places we have ever lived, partly because it offers coastline, small town feel and some of the most beautiful farms and land I have ever seen,” Tanner, who has worked and lived in more than a dozen states, said.

Shelter Bay, the 900-home residential community on land leased from the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, topped his and wife Sherri’s wish list for re-entry into the job market earlier this year.

The position opened when David Franklin left in January for a post in Whatcom County after eight years at Shelter Bay.

“I narrowed my search down to Shelter Bay in La Conner and WaterColor in Florida,” he said. “Location was our first consideration and the Pacific Northwest easily beat out Florida, where we had recently lived.”

Tanner arrives in Shelter Bay at a time when an aging infrastructure must be upgraded and the need to negotiate a new lease agreement with Swinomish looms.

“My short-term priorities,” he said, “are to develop relationships with those most involved in moving the community forward – residents, committees, Swinomish departments and leadership, as well as the Town of La Conner and Skagit County.

“Long-term,” said Tanner, “will be to manage current and future infrastructure and amenities projects efficiently, all while looking for opportunities to make a positive difference.”

Tanner majored in business management at McNeese State University in Louisiana. After college, he moved to Las Vegas and embarked on a banking career. After a few years he reached the conclusion that was not his life’s calling. He married Sherri and the couple moved to Aspen, Colorado, where he started with the Ritz-Carlton luxury hotel/hospitality company.

“That was almost 30 years ago now,” he reflected. “We now have two sons in their early 20s, the younger in Maui and the older in Logan, Utah, but hoping for an opportunity to return to Seoul, South Korea, where he worked before COVID.”

Before managing large-scale homeowners’ associations (HOA), which has been his focus for the past 15 years, Tanner managed convention centers and arenas.

Through the years and across several moves and many travels, Tanner acquired a love of the sea. He has taken over 20 family cruises.

“Being at sea, with little connectivity, is my happiest place,” Tanner said. “The destinations are great, but the journey is even better.”

Still, he is glad to have landed at Shelter Bay with its challenges and opportunities.

“Shelter Bay,” he said, “is without question the most complex HOA I have ever seen or even heard of. The levels of complexity are staggering.”

Tanner said the community board has helped him ease into his new role.

“The deciding factor,” he said, “came down to my interviews with the Shelter Bay board of directors. The last thing an HOA general manager wants is to work for a board with unrealistic expectations. This board was clearly hands-on, knowledgeable and hard working. That checked a box for me.”

On a day-to-day basis, Tanner has begun studying topics related to maintaining tribal-community relations, addressing amenities and infrastructure and moving the ball on lease negotiations.

“As these are all big picture items and the board of directors are first responders, I’m in a support role. As I’m so new, our board continues to do the heavy lifting. It’s such an understatement to say there is much to learn.”

So far, Tanner has been an eager learner.

“Community is everything,” he said. “I’ve already made close bonds and look forward to making many, many more.”