Page 46 - BusinessWest October 26, 2020

Over the past five years, the Thunderbirds have become one of
the better economic- development stories in Springfield, and the team has become part of the fabric of the community.
Thunderbirds
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logistical concerns.
“Rhode Island has a 14-day manda-
tory quarantine, so if we play Provi- dence, how does that work?” he asked rhetorically. “Meanwhile, the Canadian border is closed; we have Canadian teams, including one in our confer- ence, Toronto. And then, there’s the challenge of air travel — Charlotte is in our division, and we would normally go there once or twice a year. How doyoudothat,andhowdoyoudoit safely?
“There’s a lot of things that we as
a league have to work through,” he went on, and while coping with these day-to-day questions and challenges, he stressed the need to think and plan for the long term. He said the pan- demic will eventually be something to talk about with the past tense, and he wants to properly position the fran- chise for that day, even while coping with the present challenges.
This mindset has dominated the team’s actions with regard to every- thing from refunding tickets sold but not used last season to managing the partnerships that have been developed over the years with corporate sponsors.
“We reached out to every season- ticket holder and gave them a number of options,” he said in reference to the seven games they missed at the end of last season. “They could roll the credit over to the following year, they could donate to our foundation, or, if they didn’t want to do any of those, we would be happy to give them a refund because, at the end of the day, it’s the right thing to do.
“None of us planned for this,
so from a business perspective, we thought that any sort of pushback or anything like that is not the way to be,” he went on. “We want to make
East Longmeadow
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uled to be complete by June 2021.
A master plan allows the town to move from talking about projects to
getting them done. One example is Heritage Park, where architect draw- ings were generated in 2016 to add ath- letic fields, an amphitheater, and other improvements. The $5 million price tag has kept the redevelopment in the dis- cussion stage.
McNally said including Heritage Park in the master plan improves its chances of eventually reaching com- pletion. “It’s a beautiful resource, and we want to capitalize on it to make the park available to everyone, but right now it’s still a work in progress.”
During the pandemic, the chamber has been successful in bringing people together to talk about the challenges of COVID-19 and a variety of business topics. Christianson credits the cham- ber’s ability to quickly embrace the vir-
sure we’re doing the right thing for the people who have supported us from the start, and we’ve been proactive and honest because, at the end of the day, it’s so important for us to be authen- tic through this process because we’re not the only ones dealing with this — everyone has their own challenges.”
This approach, coupled with the team’s strong track record over the
past several years, has helped the orga- nization maintain its strong base of support, said Costa, adding that the Thunderbirds have been able to retain roughly 85% of their season-ticket sales
tual world.
“To say we didn’t skip a beat would
be an exaggeration, but we’ve done a pretty good job to help our members and to keep a consistent value proposi- tion for them.”
He noted that the chamber has even found a way to keep the popular Feast
from last year, despite the question marks hovering over the upcoming season.
“It’s been incredible to see the level of support we’ve been given,” he said. “I think people were really seeing what we are able to do in the community and how much of an impact we were having. We’ve been given commit- ments by people that they’re going to be here when we’re back.”
Looking ahead to the day when the pandemic is over and he can once again focus on selling out the Mass- Mutual Center, Costa is optimistic
event, ticket purchasers can watch the competition and receive a ‘takeout’ package of offers from local restau- rants. “Through creative thought and hard work, the chamber found another way to still run this popular event.”
Here’s the Scoop
One of the real strengths of East Longmeadow, according to Christian- son, is the healthy mix of residential and business interests. One intriguing project scheduled to open next year involves the train depot built in 1876 and located in the center of town.
Earlier this year, Graham bought the train depot and the three acres where it sits. He is in the process of convert- ing it into an ice-cream shop called the Depot at Graham Central Station.
“Even though there have been a lot of delays due to COVID, we are fin- ishing up the conversion, and we’re looking forward to opening the depot
about his prospects for doing just that. “I think it’s going to take some time
— it might take until the summer for those people who aren’t diehards to come back to our arena, but I think that, by next fall, we’ll be able to pack this place again,” he told Business- West. “I think there’s going to be a lot
of pent-up demand, and I think we’re positioned well. I think that, when peo- ple are ready to get back in the arena again, they’re going to think twice about driving to Boston and paying $300 to $400 for a ticket when they can get the same experience and see really good hockey right here in our area for a fraction of that price.”
Taking Their Best Shot
As he walked and talked with Busi- nessWest while showing off some of the many other wraps adorning the team’s offices on Bruce Landon Way, Costa stopped and reflected on the fact that last year’s schedule is still posted on the wall outside those facilities.
That schedule has become symbolic of how the NHL and the Thunderbirds have become frozen in time in some respects. No one can say when there will be new games on the slate, how the games will be played, or where.
What Costa does know is that, sometime soon — just when, he doesn’t know — there will be a new schedule in that space. Things will
be different for some time to come, and the team is certainly not going to pick right up where it left off when the music stopped last March.
But he firmly believes that the solid foundation laid before the pandemic entered everyone’s lives has the team in a good place for when we’re all on the other side of this crisis. u
George O’Brien can be reached at [email protected]
for the town to enjoy next spring,” he said. Because of its close proximity to the bike path, he hopes to open in the morning and offer light breakfast items, too.
While the anticipation of a new ice- cream shop in town is certainly some- thing to look forward to, Graham said he’s anticipating even bigger news on many fronts.
As a plastics manufacturer, he works with industries as far-ranging as aerospace and automotive to medi- cal devices and retail displays. “We are affected by many of these industries, and when they were down, it had an impact on us,” hs said.
But recent conversations with his customers reveals that many industries are starting to come back, and come back strong. “I have a great deal of opti- mism for the future.” u
“
optimism for the future.
I have a great deal of
”
in the East event going. Traditionally, this is a networking event in which members sample food from area res- taurants while local chefs compete for the Top Chef Trophy.
“This year’s event will be like the show Iron Chef, with three local chefs competing in front of judges,” he explained. Offered as a paid Zoom
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