Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has assured the owner of the Drake's Seat property where vendors have been threatened with eviction for months that the V.I. government will keep trying to get them to leave.
According to a statement Friday, the governor has written Mrs. Christine Wheaton, the landowner, to counter comments made by Attorney General Iver Stridiron that "may give the impression that the administration or its law enforcement officials may not be sensitive to Mrs. Wheaton's rights as a property owner."
The easement the Wheaton estate granted to the government years ago explicitly forbids commercial activity at the lookout, and the owners first gave vendors their notice in March.
Turnbull has granted a series of extensions to vendors as Stridiron and other government officials tried to work out a solution relocating vendors elsewhere: The Long Bay landfill along the waterfront and the area under the new Skyline Drive lookout have been cited as possible locations.
Earlier this month, attorneys for the estate, fed up with government delays, terminated the easement and declared the lookout off-limits to everyone effective Sept. 9.
The vendors have set up shop anyway.
In his statement Friday, Turnbull said, "The situation at Drake's Seat is difficult because of actions dating back many years where prior administrations and even the Territorial Court have acted to allow the vendors to remain at the site. Notwithstanding this history, I recognize the need to redress the issue. …"
He did not specify what the government's next move would be, other than to say that some department heads will "attempt to reach an amicable solution while other options are pursued."