Palace Sports & Entertainment (PSE) filed a lawsuit
Tuesday against former Lightning Owner Art Williams alleging
that Williams "drained the Ice Palace's bank account before
he sold the operation," according to Kyle Parks of the ST.
PETE TIMES, who notes that Williams sued the Lightning last
month alleging that he's "getting stuck" with about $3M that
he feels PSE "should pay" (see THE DAILY, 5/26). In the
suit filed yesterday in Hillsborough County Circuit Court,
PSE claims Williams "took" $4.9M from his stadium group's
bank account "before the deal was closed" last spring,
leaving just $5,500. The countersuit also claims that
Williams reduced his sales and marketing staff from 24 to 10
between March '99 -- when the two parties agreed to a deal
-- and June '99, when the deal was "final." PSE claims that
over that span the team "did little to prepare for a sales
campaign" for the '99-2000 season, which put it "behind in
their efforts to fill seats" (ST. PETE TIMES, 6/14). PSE
also claims that Williams "left the Ice Palace in need of
repairs" for more than $48,000 (TAMPA TRIBUNE, 6/14).
