“I have always enjoyed serving the community, and this position allows me to do so in an outdoor park environment,” he said. “As an avid bicyclist and kayaker, this job is also well aligned with my personal interests.”
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A few weeks after stepping down as Middletown’s public safety director, VanArsdale was promoted from a part-time ranger to ranger captain for MetroParks of Butler County. He had been working as a part-time ranger since April 30, 2015.
“My primary plan as ranger captain is to keep the parks open and safe for visitors to enjoy,” he said.
Kelly Barkley, MetroParks senior manager of community relations, said the ranger captain is the park district’s top safety position. The position had been vacant “for some years,” she told this news outlet.
VanArsdale’s annual salary in the MetroParks job is $68,390.
Barkley said VanArsdale has extensive experience as the former chief of police and safety director in Middletown and that his part-time position allowed him the opportunity to work at MetroParks during his off hours while still employed by Middletown.
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She said VanArsdale’s knowledge of Middletown and MetroParks expanding presence in the city through the management of the Middletown section of the Great Miami River Trail, the soon-to-be-built River Center, and the management of the Bicentennial Commons Area of Middletown, made him “a considerable asset to the park system.”
In 2016, Butler County voters approved a six-year, 0.5-mill tax renewal and 0.2-mill tax increase for MetroParks. The levies cost property owners $24.50 per $100,000 of taxable value a year, which is broken down at $15.31 for the renewal and $9.19 for the additional millage.
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