Bar Harbor pet store sues area rival

BAR HARBOR – There is a history of rival businesses antagonizing one another as they compete for customers in this scenic coastal town, where the relatively short tourist season forces many businesses to make most of their annual income during the fleeting summer months.

Within the past several years, public disputes have erupted between local hoteliers, movie theaters and even nonprofit running clubs, prompting news coverage. Other competing businesses have had more subtle feuds spurred by things such as code enforcement complaints or employees leaving one business to work for another.

With the recent filing of a civil lawsuit in Hancock County Superior Court, boutique pet stores can be added to the list of local businesses whose relationship with one another has gone to the dogs.

Wendy Scott, owner of the Bark Harbor pet store, has sued Walkin’ the Dog and its owner, Lisa Demuro, alleging that Demuro broke a contract to purchase Bark Harbor from Scott, according to court filings. The two businesses are located a few doors away from each other on Main Street across from the downtown Village Green.

In the complaint, Scott alleges that Demuro signed a confidentiality agreement with Scott last October as they were negotiating a purchase contract for Scott’s business. After signing the agreement, Demuro was granted access to proprietary information such as Bark Harbor’s financial statements, earnings reports, tax returns, and customer and vendor lists, according to the complaint. Scott claims the information was not to be used for any purpose other than negotiating the sale price of Bark Harbor.

Demuro allegedly broke off negotiations after she signed the agreement, a copy of which is included in the court file, then got to look at Bark Harbor’s books. No explanation is given in the court complaint about why negotiations were broken off or why the relationship between the two women went sour.

Mark Beaumont, a Bangor lawyer who represents Demuro in the dispute, declined Tuesday to comment on the specific allegations against his client.

“We believe there is no merit to the case,” he said. “We expect to be filing our response soon. We look forward to having our day in court as soon as possible.”

On Monday, a woman who answered the phone at Walkin’ the Dog said “Bark Harbor” when she picked up the receiver. She immediately corrected herself, saying, “I mean, Walkin’ the Dog.”

Demuro, the woman said, was not in the store and was unavailable to speak to a reporter.

Demuro, contacted in person on Tuesday, said she preferred not to comment about the lawsuit.

“I have nothing to say,” Demuro said.

Scott is seeking a permanent injunction to prevent Demuro from doing business in Hancock County. Besides breach of contract, Scott accuses Demuro of “tortious interference,” which essentially means Scott claims Demuro’s actions damaged Scott’s business, and seeks unspecified monetary damages and compensation for her attorney’s fees.

On Wednesday, a woman who answered the door at Bark Harbor said Scott was in Florida and would not be in Maine for another week or so. She said she expected to speak to Scott by phone that day and would pass along a reporter’s request for comment on the lawsuit.

Walkin’ the Dog has opened for business for the season. Bark Harbor is expected to open for the summer on May 10, according to a sign posted in the store’s front window.

In 2000, then-Criterion Theatre owner Betty Morison unsuccessfully appealed a decision by the local planning board to approve a request from Chris Vincenty, a former film projectionist at the Criterion, and partner Lisa Burton to expand their Reel Pizza movie theater on Kennebec Place.

That same year, Thomas Walsh, whose family-owned Ocean Properties Ltd. owns and operates several local hotels, clashed with rival hotelier David Witham over Walsh’s proposal to acquire and expand the waterfront Golden Anchor Inn on West Street. Despite Witham’s appeals to town officials, Walsh eventually purchased and redeveloped the property into the Harborside Hotel and Marina.

Walsh also prevailed in another legal dispute with Witham over control of part of the Park Entrance Motel property in the village of Hulls Cove. Walsh acquired it in its entirety when he bought it at an auction for $5.3 million in 2001.

Last year a running feud between two local athletic clubs, Crow Athletics and Eden Athletics, became public when a member of Crow Athletics was charged by police with tampering with Eden Athletics’ Web site. Mary Ropp, a member of Crow Athletics, eventually pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges of criminal invasion of computer privacy.

btrotter@bangordailynews.net

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