Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, June 22, 1990 TAG: 9006220890
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-4 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Since December 1988, Heard has been living rent-free in a house at the Explore site in return for doing certain maintenance work.
Heard, whose employment contract wasn't renewed this spring, contends that his vaguely worded lease, which doesn't specifically mention any dates, automatically renewed for five years in January. But Explore officials say the lease ran out June 13 and Heard is essentially squatting on state property.
Last week, Explore sent Heard a letter telling him to move out by July 16 or sign a short-term lease that will allow him to harvest his crops and move out this fall. Heard has refused.
Meanwhile, Winkler is withholding the documents necessary to rebuild at least five of the frontier-era buildings Explore has taken down and is storing at the site.
Winkler says his field notes and photographs are meaningless unless Explore pays him $9,075 to assemble them into a formal report; Explore officials say they can't afford that just now and they don't need the formal report to rebuild the structures, anyway, just his notes.
But Winkler says it would be unprofessional for him to turn them over without a formal report.
In early May, Explore's attorney sent Winkler a letter directing him to turn over his notes within two weeks or "the authority will initiate legal action to recover them."
In other action Thursday, the Virginia Recreational Facilities Authority bought another piece of land at the Explore site - 2 acres, with a house, belonging to Ruth Dickerson at the end of Rutrough Road in Roanoke County. The authority paid $33,000.
by CNB