UPDATE | More than 200 attend session to address Mill Creek MetroPark staff cuts

YOUNGSTOWN — More than 200 people in opposition to recent staff cuts at Mill Creek MetroParks packed a community meeting room tonight.

The group represented a broad swath of the community, with members of wildlife advocacy groups, a Geauga County park group and former MCMP leaders in attendance at Youngstown Community Health Center on Wick Avenue.

Among them was former Executive Director Dennis Miller, who left the park for another job in December 2014.

The group that now has organized against park leadership has called for the resignation or removal of Miller’s successor, Aaron Young, who last month implemented an “internal reorganization” plan that led to on-the-spot dismissal of 13 employees. Position eliminations are slated to save the park $13.2 million over the next 15 years for capital improvements.

In an interview, Miller said his presence at the community meeting was a show of support for those park employees who were let go.

“I think after working 17 years for the park system, and leading it for two, I developed strong relationships with a lot of employees and I was very disappointed by the treatment of the employees, and their firings. They were so passionate, and they had such a love for the park. ... You couldn’t come up with another way to fund those capital projects?"

For the complete story, read Tuesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com