29-05-2025
Levy funds in jeopardy for Terra Alta Public Library
TERRA ALTA, (WBOY) — As the town of Terra Alta awaits the state's decision on whether to accept its budget after it was submitted nearly two months late, the Terra Alta Public Library has shared its own concerns about its future.
'I was floored. I was shocked. My stomach literally dropped out.' Terra Alta Librarian Karen Chroussis said, recounting how she felt when she first learned of the town's missed budget submission.
Chroussis was not alone in her reaction to the news of the lack of budget, which means that the town cannot collect on the levy that keeps the library's lights on and its shelves stocked with books.
'What we just really want to do is sit down and cry—or I do. Because I've worked here at the library for 33 years. It's been a big part of my life,' Terra Alta Public Library Board Member Ima Thomas said.
The current library levy was approved in 2023 and is good until 2028, with the library expecting to receive $97,000 for the upcoming fiscal year, but based on the budget the town submitted to the state on May 23, those library levy funds are in jeopardy.
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The funding not only helps buy new books for the patrons the library serves, but it also provides genealogy tools, microfilm services, and other important services for the community.
'We have a lot of students come in to use Wi-Fi because they don't have it in their homes, and if that were lost—I don't know where they'll go to get what they need for school,' Wayne Williams, Terra Alta Library Board President, said.
'What bothers me is the town is who voted to pass the levy for the library,' Thomas said. Adding that in her decades-long career at the library, this is the first time that already-approved levy funding is in jeopardy.
'They overlooked, and it happened twice before they realized that. Rectify it, but don't make the people who want it—this library to be here—don't make them suffer,' Thomas said.
Although the library is a recipient of Grants in Aid through the West Virginia Library Commission, Chroussis fears that it won't be enough to sustain it, even if for just a year.
'We'll do what we can do as long as we can. But, I'm afraid if we don't get our levy, the library will close,' Chroussis said.
Williams suggested the library may instead operate on limited hours if the levy funds do not come through.
Terra Alta has been struggling to pick up the pieces since this situation came to light. Following the submission on May 23, Town Recorder Mikaela Bernard and Mayor Dan Hauger have both resigned from their positions.
The Town of Terra Alta is scheduled to have an emergency meeting on Thursday to appoint new members to the now-vacant positions, and is less than two weeks away from its election. Since Hauger's resignation, the town has also created a brand new Facebook page, which you can find here.
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