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Citizens concerned about MetroParks set to meet tonight
YOUNGSTOWN
A group of community members concerned about recent actions taken by Mill Creek MetroParks leadership is set to meet at 5:30 p.m. today at the Youngstown Community Health Center.
Organizers of the event aim to get people to attend the next park board meeting next Monday and to prepare them for it.
“We want to let people know, you’re not alone. This is a whole movement here,” said Bill Adams, an organizer of the event. “I really hope the board is going to listen. The main thing is public input and transparency, and I hope they make steps toward that.”
That call for greater responsiveness to public opinion gained momentum starting last month after MetroParks officials dismissed several staffers as part of an “internal reorganization” plan that is slated to save the park system more than $13 million over the next 15 years through position eliminations. Park officials say those funds are needed to make up for a projected capital-improvement shortfall.
Some community members, however, say they feel duped, as the MetroParks gained approval at the polls last fall of a 15-year renewal levy with additional millage specifically for capital improvements. Those funds will cover $16 million of the $30 million worth of improvements park officials plan to make.
In response to a request for comment on community members’ organizing effort, park Executive Director Aaron Young said, “The park is always open to dialogue. The park board meetings are once a month, but people are always free to call here or email here with any comments or questions they might have about the management of their MetroParks.”
“To be able to talk openly and honestly about what they see and where they want their MetroParks to go is something we always want to foster and participate in,” he said.
In addition to encouraging attendance at the next board meeting, Adams said he will distribute contact information and encourage community members to get in touch with park commissioners and Mahoning County Probate Judge Robert N. Rusu Jr., the appointing authority for the park board, before the meeting next week.
Adams hopes such efforts will push the board into making some changes, such as removal of Young as executive director and reinstatement of those employees whose positions were eliminated.
“We want to try to channel the raw emotion people have into some kind of constructive change for the park,” he said.