Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2001 21:06:03 -0400
From: freematt@coil.com (Matthew Gaylor)
Subject: 'Shrub Man' Throws in the Towel
To: freematt@coil.com (Matthew Gaylor)


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,30020,00.html

'Shrub Man' Throws in the Towel
Thursday, July 19, 2001

He's out of jail and back at his golf range, but life is still tough 
for the "shrub man." 

John Thoburn battled Virginia county and state authorities over the 
rights to his Reston, Va., land for several months. Thoburn pent 
three months in jail for failure to comply with Fairfax County zoning 
ordinances specifying where to plant trees, leading his cellmates to 
dub him "shrub man" after hearing his story. 

The dispute also left him more than $80,000 in debt, he said. 

Now the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) plans to seize 
part of Thoburn's property for a highway exit ramp, which Thoburn 
said "really is the final straw." 

"We have to look to selling some property. We really don't have any 
choice," said Thoburn, adding that fighting state officials will 
prove too costly. 

"With VDOT taking the corner where I wanted to [build a] batting cage 
and miniature golf [course], there is no way I will ever be able to 
realize that dream here," Thoburn said. "So it's really prudent for 
me to look at alternatives in terms of selling the property at this 
point."

[...] 



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