Shelter Bay manager sued for libel by board member

When Rick Tanner ends his Shelter Bay general manager job, he is taking with him a libel lawsuit Shelter Bay Community board member Judy Kontos filed in Skagit County's small claims court Friday. Kontos, as an individual, is suing Tanner personally for the maximum $10,000 allowed in small claims court for statements he wrote in his Oct. 28 resignation letter. The case is filed in Skagit County District Court

Elected to the board in May, Kontos is not named, but Tanner wrote: "Some new members seem more interested in disruption than cooperation. They harassed some of the most dedicated Board and committee members into resigning. That loss of vital institutional knowledge is tragic. Important decisions are now deferred by parliamentary wrangling and baseless assertions.

"Paralyzing the Board is bad enough, but they also harass my staff. There is simply no excuse for confronting and publicly criticizing employees instead of coming to me with any complaints."

In a Facebook post Nov. 5, Kontos explained "I absolutely will not let go unanswered and (un)defended the statements and attributions made in his resignation letter. I will defend my character and reputation in a Court of Law, not on social media. This lawsuit is a personal civil matter."

Earlier in her post she stated, "The cause of action is for Libel, also known as defamation."

Kontos emphasized her belief that Shelter Bay, as an organization, is not to pay his legal costs.

Shelter Bay's ongoing difficulties

Tanner has also been served with a legal summons by Roberta Fontenot, a lawyer living in Shelter Bay. Tanner wrote Fontenot's complaint is "over the way I performed tasks basic to my job" in his resignation letter.

Tanner shared Fontenot's Nov. 1 Tweet of the status of her lawsuit against four board members, two former board members, Tanner and legal counsel Phil Buri. She wrote she was filing by Nov. 7 and was amending her complaint "to include Louise Kari attacking me at the last regular board meeting and add Joe Hurley as a plaintiff for intentional infliction of emotional distress after he doxxed me in that newsletter" (sent to Shelter Bay residents Oct. 17). Hurley identified Fortenot's address in the letter.

Her complaint was served Oct. 13 against Shelter Bay board members Elaine Dixon, Monte Hicks, Louise Kari and Wendy Poulton. Former board members Jack Galbraith, president in 2021-2022, and Steve Swigert were also believed to have been served.

The Shelter Bay Company was four months late in filing its annual report with the Washington Secretary of State, an unnamed "concerned citizen" told the Weekly News. The company's annual report was filed by Kontos Oct. 24, well after the June 30 expiration date. Kontos apparently paid the $85 filing fee.

The email to the Weekly News stated that the Shelter Bay Community and Company "was in danger of dissolution or termination."

The organization is again in good standing with the state.