Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, January 24, 1992 TAG: 9201240231
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY BUSINESS EDITOR
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
IRS TAKES ATALANTIS
The Internal Revenue Service has seized the former downtown Roanoke offices of the Atalantis Group, charging the company has not paid almost $280,000 in federal withholding taxes.The company, headed by Price Hurst, for years operated college correspondence courses and other education-related activities through several subsidiaries. In 1980, at its peak, Atalantis claimed 75 Roanoke employees and 40 others out of town.
The IRS has liens against the company for unpaid withholding taxes from the 1989 fourth quarter through 1990 and the first three quarters of last year, said Joy Sleigh, an IRS spokeswoman in Richmond.
Sleigh said this is "a very serious matter. When a company withholds money from its employees in trust, they are stealing from the employees."
She declined to say what steps her agency is taking to collect the unpaid taxes. However, a Roanoke lawyer familiar with the company said the IRS has tried to seize its furnishings or assets. The lawyer spoke only on condition he not be identified.
The Atalantis office building at 105 W. Campbell Ave. is owned by heirs of the Marshall Nininger estate. Another company, American International Schools, bought some of its assets and it operates an educational marketing and consulting business with colleges, according to Andrew Hurst, Price Hurst's son and a principal in the firm.
Andrew Hurst, however, would not comment on the IRS liens. Price Hurst, who has been chairman of Atalantis, could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Andrew Hurst said AIS helps colleges market adult degree programs. "We don't teach; we're not in the education business."
Atalantis also is a defendant in five Roanoke City Circuit Court suits seeking more than $370,000, mainly for use of computers and software programs.
Dominion Computers of Roanoke has a garnishment against Atalantis for almost $86,000. IBM has repossessed equipment and software but claims a debt of more than $232,000 by Atalantis, according to court papers. Chaney, Thomas Stephenson & Hill, an insurance company, has a motion for judgment for more than $20,000 against Atalantis for an unpaid bill.
Atalantis has operated a number of subsidiaries, including Virginia Southern College, External Degree Services and the American Institute for Advanced Study.
Its correspondence program for Upper Iowa University once enrolled more than 1,000 people. A network of counselors, working on commission, contacted people who answered advertisements that claimed "You can earn your college degree at home."