Tourism Billboards Highlight Staff Cuts at Cuyahoga Valley National Park
When traversing the northeastern outskirts of Columbus via State Route 161, a peculiar tourism-themed billboard may catch your attention. This billboard and others similar to it are highlighting the staffing cutbacks made possible by the Dept. of Govt. Efficiency at Ohio’s sole national park, Cuyahoga Valley. The bold message they display is, ‘Greetings from Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Now with Reduced Staff Made Possible by DOGE.’
Such billboards, highlighting the staff cuts at CVNP and other national parks, have been popping up across the U.S. Their funding comes from a progressive organization called More Perfect Union, headed by an associate of Vermont Senator, Bernie Sanders. So far, about 70 such billboards have shown up in Ohio, particularly around the Cleveland and Akron areas.
Beyond Ohio, these billboards have been making appearances across state lines. They’ve been sighted in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Erie, Pennsylvania, alerting locals and visitors alike to the federal government’s recent string of staff reductions in national parks. The highlighted cuts comprise a range of roles, including biological, engineering, planning, and maintenance staff.
In response to these showcased cutbacks, a spokesperson for CVNP assured the public that park operations will continue as usual. They acknowledged that despite the staff reductions, ”Most of the trails and facilities will remain open for normal hours in Cuyahoga Valley National Park this summer.”
The spokesperson further detailed changes specific to the park, noting that ”The Towpath Trail between Fitzwater Road and Tinkers Creek Aqueduct is temporarily closed for riverbank stabilization to address active erosion. Also, two of the park’s 28 public restrooms are currently closed.”
More Perfect Union’s directive behind funding these billboards was to highlight the severity of the job cuts. The group’s executive director expressed concern about the perceived priority of these cuts, noting, ”In my view, targeting these jobs as the first response to government inefficiencies or fraud seems ill-advised. There exist numerous other, more fitting targets if the aim is to address government wastage or inefficiency.”
In addition to questioning the need for the cuts, the executive director scrutinized how DOGE went about deciding the reductions. The group’s reason for initiating the billboard campaign was to raise awareness about the cuts, just ahead of the peak tourist season during summer — a time when national parks typically document a high volume of visitors.
Expressing concern about the potential fallout of these budget cuts, the director implied a possible decline in quality experiences for park-goers. ”Families eagerly await their visit to these parks for most of the year. It’s a chance to explore the finest America has to offer, and it’s disconcerting to think that this year… maybe people’s experiences won’t be as satisfying as previous years,” the director lamented.
More Perfect Union is keeping an eye out for the Trump administration’s planned cuts in the federal budget in addition to proposals to sell parkland and other federal property to commercial interests for mining, drilling, and similar activities. The group aims to raise awareness and promote discourse around these issues.
Ultimately, while the group’s executive director doesn’t expect that the billboards will stop anyone from visiting these parks, he does believe they could spark meaningful conversations and debates. In particular, he hopes they inspire reflection on why these budget cuts were deemed necessary in the first place.
Despite the financial diversity of visitors—ranging from humble income earners to billionaries—the national park experience is usually the same for all. The director asserts, ”Irrespective of whether you’re a billionaire or someone who makes $100,000 a year or even $10,000, when you visit national parks, the experience generally remains similar. Our primary aim is to ensure that we keep this unchanged.”