April 27, 2023, Yosemite National Park, California.
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The Trump administration is considering a potential land swap that would swap portions or interests in Yosemite National Park with private developers seeking new access roads, the Interior Department and the company’s lawyers have confirmed.
Kingsburn attorney Lanny Davis said in a statement that the National Park Service is in talks with Nevada-based Kingsburn Realty Capital about a land swap that would allow the developer to build “less than a mile” of access roads to Yosemite’s entrance.
Kingsburn owns an 83-acre parcel near Yosemite’s western border, historically known as Hazel Green Ranch. As part of the deal, Kingsburn will purchase land of comparable value elsewhere in California and turn it over to the Park Service, according to documents obtained by NOTUS, which first reported the move.
A Home Office spokesperson said in a statement that no final decision had been made.
“Land exchange and access proposals involving National Park Service lands will be subject to all applicable federal laws, regulations and department policies, including any required environmental reviews and public notice procedures,” the spokesperson said.
It added that if the proposal moves forward, the department would “follow established procedures” to ensure transparency and public participation “in accordance with federal law.”
Mr Davis said the proposal would be beneficial to the environment as the shortened access route would reduce travel and vehicle emissions.
The Sierra Club, an environmental advocacy group, denounced the plan as a “corrupt backroom deal” that violates long-standing promises to “protect Yosemite in the public interest” by handing over national park land to developers.
The National Park Conservation Association said the proposal “seeks to dismantle America’s conservation heritage.”
“This is an attack on the American people who own this national park,” the group said in a statement. “This is also illegal and courts have previously rejected road development proposals.”
The property’s former owner previously went to court seeking an easement for the road into Yosemite. A federal appeals court granted dismissal of these claims in 2012.
While land swaps are common elsewhere in the federal government, swapping National Park Service land for private development access is unusual, NOTUS reported, citing a former Park Service official. The Trump administration’s legal justification for the exchange remains unclear.
Kingsburn CEO Jeff Poli has made regular, mostly small donations to President Donald Trump’s campaign committee in 2024 and 2025, and has no history of donating to national political campaigns before October 2024, according to NOTUS.
CNBC found no evidence that Polly’s political contributions influenced the administration’s consideration of the proposal.
