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CABELL COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - The newly sworn in Superintendent of Cabell County Schools, Tim Hardesty, wants to reverse course, restoring full funding to both the Cabell County Public Library and Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District.

In a press release on Friday, Cabell County Schools announced a special board meeting to discuss the upcoming excess levy.

That special board meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 9, according to Cabell County Schools.

Superintendent Tim Hardesty said, “We are excited that we have a path forward that restores total funding to the Cabell County Public Library and the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District. This resolution and proposed excess levy call will restore full funding to both the Libraries and Parks as outlined in the current approved excess levy. We look forward to moving into the future as a unified group to make Cabell County the best it can be!”

The announcement is an about-face from the prior administration and the controversy surrounding a state supreme court decision earlier this year that said the district no longer needed to provide funding for parks and libraries, resulting in the county offering less funding to the two groups.

Superintendent Hardesty sat down with WSAZ to explain why on day 5 that he’s deciding to call for change.

“I think the reason that we need to do this as soon as possible, we have reached a tentative resolution. I know their board need to meet next week to formally adopt that but, we have been able to reach a resolution to this that fully funds the parks and the libraries,” Hardesty said.

In May, voters voted down an excess levy renewal that would have allocated $200,000 to parks and $1,370,000 to libraries.

“I think it’s clear that the voters have said that in order to support the Cabell County School system that they are not going to do that at the expense of another entity and especially one of the entities that make the community strong as well and that’s why I think it’s important we work together as a group,” Hardesty said.

The new proposal announced on July 5, 2024 would allocate $1,862,289 to Cabell County Public Libraries and $575,979 to the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District.

The board said the items below will be acted upon:

- A transfer of funds that reflects a restoration of funding to Cabell County Public Library (CCPL) & Greater Huntington Park & Recreation District (GHPRD) inclusive of equalization payments for fiscal years 2022-2023 and 2023-2024. Final equalization amounts will be calculated in late July/early August and released in August 2024. Estimated totals:

$711,324.02 to CCPL
$223,737.02 to GHPRD

- An allocation of funds that reflects a restoration of funding to CCPL & GHPRD inclusive of equalization payments for fiscal year 2024-2025. Final equalization amounts will be calculated in late July/early August and released in August 2024. Estimated totals:

$590,420.00 to CCPL
$185,750.00 to GHPRD

- A revised Excess Levy call order for fiscal years 2026-2030

Should the board approve the proposed levy, it will be placed on the ballot during the general election on November 5, 2024.

The Cabell County Schools Excess Levy is a renewal of an existing levy and would therefore not raise taxes should voters approve it in November.

In addition to provisions for the public libraries and local parks, the Cabell County Schools Excess Levy provides funding for school safety initiatives, including the employment of School Resource Officers (SROs), salary supplements for all staff, salaries for paid athletic coaches, summer programming, Career & Technical Education and workforce development, instructional support and materials, cybersafety and device security, and maintenance and equipment.

We reached out to the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District and they said they also plan to hold a special meeting about the future of the levy. This will take place at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the St. Cloud Commons and is open to the public.

They said they are very positive about the negotiations and is looking forward to working on a solution for the community of Huntington.

We also reached out to the libraries, and they in turn asked us to reach out to their lawyer for comment. Attorney Mark Williams released the following statement Friday night: “The library and parks boards will meet this coming week to vote on the board of education’s proposal. If the BOE approves Superintendent Hardesty’s proposal, I will recommend that both boards do the same.”

Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest information.