Page 44 - BusinessWest August 8, 2022

The following is a compilation of recent lawsuits involving area businesses and organizations. These are strictly allegations that have yet to be proven in a court of law. Readers are advised to contact the par- ties listed, or the court, for more information concern- ing the individual claims.
Court Dockets
HAMPDEN SUPERIOR COURT
Lisandra Virella v. Related Management, LLC and Chestnut Park Reservation, LP
Allegation: Negligent maintenance of the property, violation of covenant of quiet enjoyment: $4,301.64 Filed: 7/14/22
Michael Gosselin v. Commonwealth of Massachu- setts, Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Department of Conservation & Recreation Allegation: Age and disability discrimination, retalia- tion: $200,000
Filed: 7/14/22
Letticia J. Chacon v. New England Farm Workers’ Council Inc.
Allegation: Violation of employment contract Filed: 7/15/22
Thunderbirds
Continued from page 8
that gives you a lot to sell,” he went on. “The playoffs, to me, was all about maximizing the opportunity.”
Setting Sale
As he talked with BusinessWest, Costa was wear- ing a ‘Calder Cup Finals’ pullover. At one point in the proceedings, he paused to show off the AHL’s Eastern Conference Championship trophy, named for former AHL President Richard Canning.
These are just a few of the symbolic ways in which he and his team are still living in the moment, if you will.
But in most other ways, the team is putting its deep playoff run behind it and moving onto next sea- son. Indeed, Costa made a point of referring to the 2021-22 campaign as ‘last season,’ and to 2022-23 as ‘this season.’
Which brought him back to the ‘good problem to have’ he mentioned at the top.
“It’s a blessing and a curse,” he said of the short- ened offseason, noting that it’s too short for everyone involved — players, many of whom will be back with the team, as well as coaches and administrators.
But from a business perspective, and most all other perspectives, it certainly beats the alternative — another season with no playoffs.
“I’m going to take the playoff run and everything that came with it over a longer offseason,” he said, adding quickly that some, but not all, of the page- turning work that comes after a year’s final game is over had to wait until the playoff run ended.
The mission now is to make up for that lost time, and Costa and his team are now forging ahead with the plans for 2022-23. The schedule has been offi- cially released, which means the team can now start slotting in everything from annual events to who will sing the national anthem at each game.
And, as he mentioned, there is momentum to
Evelio Rivera v. Anderson Cleaning, et al Allegation: Damages to person, labor abuse: $50,000 Filed: 7/18/22
Yolanda Canivares, personal representative of the estate of Ismael Mignucci v. Multicultural Com- munity Services of the Pioneer Valley Inc., Marvin Bosompem, Gustavo Figuereo, and John/Jane Doe Allegation: Wrongful death, negligence, gross negli- gence: $50,000+
Filed: 7/18/22
Danny Coles v. Howard S. Ying, M.D.; Lauren Free-
land, O.D.; Andrew Wialkowiak, O.D.; Franklin Eye CareAssociates,LLC;andEye&LasikGroup,P.C. Allegation: Medical malpractice, negligence resulting in personal injury
Filed: 7/19/22
Martin Kucharczyk and others similarly situ-
ated v. North Atlantic Trucking Inc. and Nicholas Mercolino
Allegation: Defendant misclaimed plaintiff and oth- ers as independent contractors, statutory and com- mon-law violations, failure to pay proper wages and improper deductions from pay: $75,000
Filed: 7/19/22
build on, and it is already showing up in season-ticket sales; by mid-July, the team had more than 1,150 season tickets sold for the coming season, a jump of nearly 100 from last year, with more than 200 still to renew and a projected 80% of those coming back. That means the team is looking at perhaps a 30% increase in season-ticket volume.
And that should be just one area of growth, he said, adding that, overall, a short offseason isn’t beneficial only because of what it means about last season.
“I know it’s exhausting, and I know
we’re working extra games, but this
”
“The other blessing about going so late into
the playoffs is that it’s only three months from the end of our year to the start of the new year,” Costa explained. “I think there’s still going to be a lot of pent-up excitement, especially with the number of guys we have coming back and the continuity with raising the banner and all that.
“Early on in the year is typically really hard for us,” he went on, adding that the team is competing with pro and college football and other sports as well. “But coming out of this, I think we’re going to have a lot
of momentum. We don’t really hit our stride typically on the business side with big crowds until December, when people really start to turn the page and think hockey. This will help us early in the season; we’re going to come out of the gates strong.”
As the team continues its budgeting for the com- ing year, it will be aggressive as it sets goals for ticket sales and revenue because of last year’s suc- cess, Costa said, but it will also look for new areas in
Automotive Industries Compensation Corp. v. Rod- man Ford Sales Inc.
Allegation: Breach of written contract, breach of implied contract, assessment due for workers’ compensation
Filed: 7/21/22
155 Maple Condominium Trust, Martin O’Connell, Salvatore Cangialosi, and Ama Kyereme, trustees v. Zahn Property, LLC and Daniel Cohen
Allegation: Condominium charges, assessments, and fees
Filed: 7/21/22
MianYasirHameedandAfshanSafdarv.Corner- stone Mortgage Corp., its successors, assigns, and/ or any persons claiming by, through, or under any of it
Allegation: Seeking to quiet title to premises due to improperly discharged mortgage
Filed: 7/25/22
Tiffany Figueroa v. Armoury Park Gardens and Springfield Gardens
Allegation: Negligence; slip and fall resulting in per- sonal injury: $58,379.87
Filed: 7/25/22
which to grow and improve, on both the revenue and expense sides.
“It’s just the maturation of the business,” he explained. “We’re in a healthy place now, and it’s all about how we take advantage of our momentum. When we took this over, it was obviously exciting, but there wasn’t a ton of value built up in the brand, and now we’ve gotten to the point where we have some value built into the brand, and we have to take advantage of that.
“Now, we have a winning team to talk about and a championship-caliber team,” he went on. “And that just adds to everything that we’re doing, and it makes our job easier.”
Soar Subject
Summing up the playoff run that was, from both a personal and professional perspective, Costa said it was, in a word, “special.”
“It was one of the coolest experiences I’ve had in my career,” he said, noting that the team won the Eastern Conference title exactly six years from the day the new franchise was announced. “I’ve been in pro sports for more than 15 years now and had never gotten to that point — it was fulfilling on many levels.
“And that’s one of the things I hammered home with our staff. I said, ‘I know it’s exhausting, and I know we’re working extra games, but this doesn’t happen every year,’” he went on, adding that, when it does happen, a team has to take full advantage of the moment — and the momentum created by that moment.
And he and his team are fully committed to doing just that. u
George O’Brien can be reached at [email protected]
doesn’t happen every year.
44 AUGUST 8, 2022
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