Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 1, 1994 TAG: 9407010101
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
In keeping with the clean sweep he has made of other state boards, Allen replaced all six Explore board members whose terms were up Thursday and in their places installed key Republican Party activists and contributors.
Ousted in the shake-up were the Explore board's chairman, retired banker Clifford Cutchins III of Virginia Beach; vice chairman, Vinton Mayor Charles Hill; and former chairman, Roanoke funeral home president Lawrence Hamlar.
Allen's decision not to replace Cutchins - whom Explore backers had looked to as heavyweight in the state's financial community who could help them raise money from outside the Roanoke Valley - left some Explore supporters shaking their heads.
"I'm a little nonplussed he'd replace the chairman, who's been a loyal Allen supporter," said retired Roanoke College President Norman Fintel, one of the seven board members whose terms do not expire until next year. "That's a loss."
Cutchins, who will preside over Explore's opening ceremonies today before a crowd of VIPs, said he didn't mind being replaced. "That's fine," Cutchins said. "That's his prerogative. It's a long way from Roanoke to Virginia Beach when you pay your own way and fly in those little planes."
Privately, though, some Explore supporters expressed concern about such a large turnover on the park's governing body, especially when the park is finally opening and the nonprofit group that established the park, the River Foundation, is turning over day-to-day control to the state board.
In addition to Cutchins, Hill and Hamlar, the other three members of the Virginia Recreational Facilities Authority board who weren't reappointed were Northern Virginia developer Carey Crane, Bedford County architect J. Everette "Ebo" Fauber III and Rolando Syndor Moore of Roanoke. Crane was one of the board's most active members, playing a leading role in the recent contract negotiations between the foundation and the authority.
In their places, Allen appointed:
Trixie Averill, a Roanoke County homemaker who headed Allen's campaign in Western Virginia last year and has been widely recognized as one of the region's most important Republican activists.
Stan Lanford of Roanoke, the president of the Lanford Brothers Co. construction firm.
Tom Blakley of Salem, a retired General Electric marketing specialist and former Salem GOP chairman.
Gerry Walker, a Bedford County homemaker and chairwoman of the county's Republican Party.
D.J. Cooper of Bent Mountain, a retired carpenter and owner of the Hardy Road Mobile Home Park. He also was one of Allen's biggest contributors in Western Virginia last year, giving his campaign at least $9,500.
W. Thomas Meredith of Franklin County, a retired Air Force general who was described by the governor's office as "one of the most experienced and eminent authorities" in the field of project management. He also has been a Republican activist.
Of the six new appointees, the only two who have been involved with Explore are Lanford, a River Foundation member whose company has contributed heavily to the project, and Averill, who has served on the park's advisory board.
An Allen spokesman could not be reached to comment on the governor's appointments.
by CNB