“Over the past few years, I have had the pleasure of working for the Pegula family, serving as their business partner and lead executive on the new stadium project. Our cooperation has been satisfying and I am very proud of all that we have achieved across the organization,” the statement said. I am excited about what lies ahead as the time has come for me to take on new challenges as a professional.
“As a lifelong Buffalo resident, it has been a blessing to work alongside the Bills, Sabers and PSE players. My family and I would like to personally thank the entire community for all the love and support they have shown us.”
A person familiar with the matter told The News that Laquia’s departure from the Bills executive was unrelated to the sale of ADPRO, which was the initial basis for Kim’s relationship with Terry Pegula. A few months after the couple acquired the Buffalo Sabers in 2011, Laquia met with Kim Pegula at the Buffalo Sabers office to show him samples of branded clothing that ADPRO could provide for the hockey team’s next European tour. He met Terry Pegula later that year.
“All relationships start on an individual level. When the Pegula family first came here, my family and our company had a very good relationship, both professionally and personally,” Laquia told the newspaper in an article published last April.
In the years that followed, ADPRO and the Pegula family’s presence in Buffalo grew. ADPRO purchased the naming rights to the Buffalo Bills Training Center in June 2014 as it expanded its business. In September 2014, Pegrass offered the winning bid for the Bills from the family of the late team founder Ralph Wilson Jr.
In 2017, Kim Pegula and her children purchased a majority stake in ADPRO, while LaQia retained its president title and held a minority stake with its partners.
Laquia also joined the Bills as an executive in 2017, and when Kim Pegula became team president the following year, he became one of her top lieutenants. LaQuire was the Bills’ points person when talks began in earnest with New York State and Erie County to build a new stadium in Orchard Park in mid-2021. A year later, in June 2022, Laquia effectively took over the running of the team when Kim Pegula went into cardiac arrest and went into a lengthy recovery period.
Luckuir was one of the speakers on stage as groundbreaking was held for the future Highmark Stadium, located across the street from the Bills’ current home in Orchard Park. The other was political and football heavyweight Terry Pegula, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Gov. Kathy Hochol and Erie County Executive Mark Polonkers.
With Terry Pegula now taking over as team president and Sabers executive John Ross expanding his role to fill Laquia’s former position, the sale of ADPRO would completely mark the end of the Laquia-Pegula partnership.
“One of Ron’s achievements will be his leadership in bringing the new stadium to life,” former New York Lieutenant Governor Bob Duffy said in a text message to The News Friday evening.
Duffy, CEO of the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce and chairman of Empire State Development’s Erie County Stadium Corporation, said Laquia was “awesome to work with” and a “consummate professional.”
He added, “The new Buffalo Bills Stadium will be a world-class facility worthy of a world-class team/organisation… We wish Ron and his family the best as they embark on their next chapter of success.”
