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Topics related to litigation against Shelter Bay board members could not be discussed, but there was still plenty to talk about during the second in a series of Shelter Bay town hall forums at the community clubhouse Sunday night.

The scheduled one-hour session lasted 90 minutes as a large gathering – though somewhat smaller than the standing room only crowd that last month's meeting – waded through several subjects, most notably increased HOA (homeowners' association) fees and the status of new master lease talks with the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community.

The dialogue was fast-paced and mostly civil, though at one point an attendee repeatedly used a term describing bovine fecal matter in contesting a response from Shelter Bay Board President Wendy Poulton.

Poulton, Vice President Joseph Hurley, Secretary Monte Hicks and Gary Ladd, the board's newest member and forum emcee, were called upon to field the bulk of questions posed by community residents.

Poulton addressed concerns raised about hiring at $10,000 per month consultwants Akid'nson LLC. over two years ago to serve as liaisons with Swinomish on the master lease matter. Several attendees questioned if that money has been well spent.

Poulton said the consultants, who were not named, are Swinomish members who reside in Shelter Bay and whave been able to make some inroads in the stalemated master lease talks.

"I was not here, this was before my time," Poulton said. "It was something that I inheriwted, but the idea was to hire consultants with access to tribal members to get our feet in the door."

They have engaged both with tribal officials and allotees – individual Swinomish members from whom Shelter Bay leases land – in attempts to move the process forward, Poulton said.

"We've had a two-and-a-half hour meeting with Chairman (Steve) Edwards and tribal senators," said Poulton. "Chairman Edwards said the tribe will create a proposal."

"The consultants have moved us farther ahead than we've been before," said Poulton, who also expressed confidence in Edwards and tribal leaders.

"Getting a new lease is better for the tribe and better for everyone," she said, noting that 30-year home mortgages in Shelter Bay are no longer on the table since the master lease expires in 2044.

"It will reinvigorate Shelter Bay," she said, "and be more affordable for families because right now families can't afford 15-year mortgages."

Ladd said that in 2015 Shelter Bay had "spent a lot of money" on unproductive lease negotiations.

"The tribe was not willing to talk to us after that," he said. "We were at a stalemate. I believe the reason they were hired is to break the stalemate."

Shelter Bay leadership has indicated that allotees, with whom Akid'nson has conferred, stand to benefit under a new lease rather than reach a point where they would have to negotiate directly with lessees.

The consultants have also been tasked with development of educational videos to help interested parties better understand the lease issue, Poulton explained.

Increased monthly HOA fees consumed much of Sunday's discussion.

"Is the $200 going to the consultants?" one audience member asked.

Ladd said HOA increases are necessitated to repair and/or replace failing half-century old infrastructure for which capital improvements funding was not committed decades ago.

"Our forefathers in the 1970s didn't put aside the money," said Ladd. "We're now in a position where things are falling apart, and money wasn't collected over the years, and now we have to fix things."

Ladd and Hicks expressed pessimism that the community'w several years, can be opened in 2023. Hicks said the pools were constructed without permit in the 1970ss and have no grandfather protection when it comes to meeting contemporary code requirements such as slopes and flow rates.

She believes it will be more cost effective to build one new pool that can serve the entire community rather than sink money into upgrading these pools.

When asked why the community picked up $92,000 in fines imposed by Swinomish for unauthorized tree-cutting at Rainbow Park by Steve Swigert, a former board member, Poulton explained it was a matter of cutting their costs.

"To get that person to pay it would require a court judgment," she said. "To get a judgment, we would have to go to court. To go to court, we would have to spend quite a bit of money to get to the table."

Poulton also said there would be the risk of Shelter Bay not receiving a favorable judgment and then be assessed the other litigant's attorney's fees.

Poulton and Ladd stressed that Shelter Bay remains committed to holding town halls on the Sunday following each board meeting. There is not a December board meeting or town hall, they said