Park Service weighs land swap that could transfer Yosemite acreage to developer

The National Park Service has informed Congress it is negotiating a land exchange that could transfer a portion of Yosemite National Park to a private landowner seeking to connect property to a park road for commercial development. The Interior Department says no final decision has been made and denies any secret effort to hand over park land. A representative for the company involved called the exchange an environmentally beneficial move.

The proposed exchange would require the landowner to acquire property within Yosemite or other California NPS units as compensation, according to the document sent to Congress. Interior officials emphasize no final decision exists and say any proposal would follow federal procedures for transparency and public involvement. The department explicitly rejected claims of political pressure or secret negotiations.

Lanny Davis, a former Clinton administration counsel now representing Kingsbarn Realty Capital, frames the swap as environmentally sound, noting the road would not endanger species. Opposition includes Sen. Alex Padilla, who invoked the Land and Water Conservation Fund's purpose, and the National Parks Conservation Association, which called the deal an attack on public ownership of the park.