The Trump administration is reportedly pushing to give a parcel of land inside Yosemite National Park to a Nevada-based private developer, according to a report from Notus published on Friday. The National Park Service has been exploring how to transfer a quarter-mile parcel to Kingsbarn Realty Capital, a company that already owns an 83-acre plot of undeveloped land immediately outside the park.
Background of the land dispute
Kingsbarn Realty Capital, which purchased the 83-acre plot in 2024, has been seeking to construct a private road through the park to connect its land to a central Yosemite route. The current access road to the property is more than 10 miles from the nearest park entrance, forcing travelers to take a longer, indirect route to reach popular attractions. Jeff Pori, the company's CEO, has expressed interest in building a short road to address this issue, according to Notus.
The previous owner of the land had also lobbied the federal government for decades to allow a private road, but was unsuccessful. The park service's exploration of the land transfer has created tension within the agency, as administration officials have proposed exchanging the Yosemite land for equally valuable land elsewhere in California.
Reactions and official statements
The report has sparked outrage among National Park Service supporters and environmental advocates. Jayson O'Neill, spokesperson for Save Our Parks, condemned the proposal, saying it reflects a "push to sell off public lands and privatize America's national parks" by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. O'Neill added, "If mismanaging parks and stealing entrance fees for Trump's DC vanity projects wasn't enough, now Americans find out Doug Burgum and his cronies spent a year secretly negotiating to hand a piece of Yosemite national park over to a well-connected developer, all while lying to us about protecting them."
Both of California's senators have expressed opposition to the road development, as has Democratic Congressman Jared Huffman, who represents the state's north coast. Huffman stated, "Our parks belong to all of us. These places should be protected for every generation, not sold off to Trump's ultra-wealthy friends to profit off of. I will fight this, both for Yosemite and for every treasured park that would be up for grabs if this domino falls."
In response to the Notus report, Aubrie Spady, an interior department spokesperson, rejected the claims, stating there "has been no political pressure to reach a predetermined outcome" and that suggesting the department is secretly working to hand over National Park Service land to a private developer is "false."
Next steps and legal requirements
The interior department said no final decisions have been reached and that any land exchange or access proposal would be "subject to all applicable federal laws, regulations and Departmental policies, including required environmental review and public notification processes." The proposal, if pursued, would require significant legal and environmental scrutiny before any transfer could occur.
