Worcester Business Journal

4 Worcester Business Journal | January 8, 2024 | wbjournal.com I N B R I E F UMass Chan layoffs "It is reasonably foreseeable that additional layoffs may occur within the next ninety (90) days." David LaChappelle, director of employee and labor relations for UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester, wrote in a letter accompanying a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) to the state government, saying it plans to lay off 36 employees at vaccine division MassBiologics in February, with more possibly to come at the 84-employee unit Heywood reopening "Delivery of mental health care services locally is essential to the overall health of our community. Recruitment of licensed mental health clinical staff continues to be the greatest challenge. The mental health unit operates 24/7, requiring the staffing of professionals for all three shifts." Heywood Healthcare co-CEO Rozanna Penney said about the financially embattled hospital system reopening its inpatient mental health unit after closing it in October 2021 due to staffing shortages New president "We are extremely excited to have Jim join the Beacon MedTech team given his substantial experience in leading growth-oriented companies and building cohesive and effective team. His interim success demonstrates his leadership will play a pivotal role in building Beacon MedTech's future." Carr Preston, board member of Beacon Manufacturing Group, on Jim Colony being named president of its Leominster-based subsidiary Beacon MedTech Solutions after serving in the role on an interim basis since March. Pictured is Colony. BY ERIC CASEY WBJ Staff Writer T he majority owners of Charlton-based Tree House Brewing have responded to a Novem- ber lawsuit filed by an individual with a minority stake in the company, claiming the passive investor has been well compensated for his initial $10,000 investment and denying allegations of wrongdoing made in his lawsuit. e answer to the original com- plaint was filed in Hampden County Superior Court on Dec. 21 by Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, a Boston-founded law firm headquar- tered in Washington D.C. representing Tree House and its majority owners, Nathan Lanier and Damien Goudreau. e response claims Eric Granger, the minority shareholder who is suing them, has received over $850,000 in distributions from Tree House aer making a $10,000 investment for 2% of the company in 2012. Lanier and Goudreau's legal repre- sentation say even aer tax payments, this would leave Granger with more than $250,000 in income, which would be at least a 2,400% return on investment. e November lawsuit filed by Granger made a number of claims against Lanier and Goudreau, arguing the two took a number of steps to block him from financially benefit- ing from his 2% ownership stake in the company as it achieved national success. e response pushes back against other claims made by Granger, saying he was never entitled to any control of the company and Lanier and Gou- dreau made multiple attempts to buy out his shares for a price higher than fair market value. ey denied Granger's claims the company forged a Criminal Offender Record Information form related to state-mandated background check, saying the company did not mislead government officials about the docu- ments and only updated the form to reflect the fact it was in regards to a different location than the CORI form originally signed by Granger. e response says Granger refused to sign the document because the company was not giving him access to information he was not entitled to, and the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission closed an investigation into Granger's com- plaint about the CORI form without a decision that found wrongdoing, although Granger's lawsuit claims that the agency sent a warning letter to Tree House aer investigators were made aware of the edits. An ABCC document obtained by WBJ via a public records request regarding Granger's complaint showed investigators determined the only alter- ation made to the CORI documents was the municipality listed as the place of business. e document showed that ABCC investigators told Tree House from this point forward, any application submit- ted will require a brand new, completed CORI Release Form, while also ad- mitting the agency had accepted such edited documents in the past. Among their other responses to Granger's lawsuit, Lanier and Goudreau took issue with Granger's claim the duo used holding companies to clandestinely purchase real estate before leasing it back to Tree House, with Lanier and Goudreau saying shareholders were informed of these moves and Lanier and Goudreau took substantial personal risk not taken by other shareholders in order to facilitate Tree House's expansion. In regards to claims that Lanier and Goudreau were using company assets to furnish a lavish lifestyle, the response claims two Tesla Model 3s that were purchased by the company are used by employees to travel between the compa- ny's locations for work-related purposes, and purchases of a 2016 Range Rover Sport, a 2021 Mercedes GLC300, and a 2020 Audi Q8 were necessary to accom- modate executives' frequent business travel. e response denies any wrongdoing by Tree House or Lanier and Goudreau and requests a trial by jury. Tree House fires back against minority owner's lawsuit Tree House Brewing operates five locations in Massachusetts and Connecticut, including this headquarters in Charlton. PHOTO | WBJ FILE W

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