Lawsuit: Power play tried to force shareholder out of Power to Play Sports

WINDSOR — The founder of Power to Play Sports LLC has claimed in a lawsuit that other owners and managers of the organization have engaged in a power play to force him out.

Michael Peterson, a Loveland resident, said in the lawsuit that he founded the organization, which then spun out another organization, Power to Play Sports Facilities LLC, which then built and operated the NoCo Sports Center at 5699 Crooked Stick Drive in Windsor. Peterson gathered partners along the way, including numerous others cited as defendants in the lawsuit.

He said in the lawsuit that he owns 35% of the company, with Shane Powell of Greeley owning 58% and three others with lesser shares. It cites Marc Lehrer, the manager of the facility, among the defendants. 

The lawsuit claims that other owners attempted to surreptitiously move Peterson toward retirement with an offer to buy him out. Peterson also had other business interests that intertwined with the sports facility, including a Ziggi’s coffee franchise that leased space within the NoCo Sports facility.

Powell gained a majority share of the company when another stockholder retired and sold his shares. The lawsuit claimed that Powell then forced a rewrite of operating agreements to change voting requirements and alter expulsion provisions.

Lehrer was brought on as manager, and he “promised to purchase plaintiff’s interest in Power to Play and Sports Facilities for $835,000 in cash” plus a two-year consulting agreement that would have paid Peterson $10,000 a month, attorneys for Peterson wrote. Peterson at the time considered his share of the operation to be worth $1.385 million, the lawsuit said. Lehrer also offered to buy the Ziggi’s franchise. He later reneged on both offers, the lawsuit alleged. Larimer County property records show the assessor’s actual value of the land and improvements at $5.3 million; the building encompasses 50,852 square feet.

After Peterson announced his retirement, he was locked out of the building and computer systems, and the Ziggi’s franchise was lost because he was unable to operate it, the lawsuit said.

In April 2023, a new offer was made, this one for $419,762. In August 2023, another new offer was made, this one for $105,566, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims breach of contract, breach of good faith and fair dealing, fraud, conspiracy, theft and defamation. It seeks damages, including triple damages, as well as attorney and court fees.

Calls to NoCo Sports and Lehrer were not returned prior to publication time. Powell said in a text message and a voicemail message to BizWest that he sold his shares to Lehrer in 2022 and is no longer involved in the company.

The case is Michael Peterson v. Power to Play Sports LLC, et al, case number 2024cv30396 filed in Larimer County District Court.

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