FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, June 6, 2025
Keene, N.Y. – In the wake of news that the 36,000-acre Whitney Park is under contract to be purchased by a developer, Adirondack Wilderness Advocates (AWA) today called upon New York State to step up to ensure the best possible protection of what is one of the most significant wild parcels in private ownership in the Eastern United States. “As stated in our by-laws, AWA does not enter into private land issues,” said Board Chair Pete Nelson. “We certainly respect the rights of private owners to decide to whom they wish to sell their land. But the State of New York’s role in land protection is well within our purview. We are deeply disappointed by news reports and statements by the landowners that the State did not even contact them during the time Whitney Park was on the market. For more than three decades this parcel has been identified as a top priority in the State’s Open Space Conservation Plan. Given that remote wild lands are an increasingly scarce resource, plus given the 30×30 Law that requires New York to protect 30% of its lands and waters within the next five years, the State should have been first in line. This is a tragic and unjustifiable lost opportunity.”
However, the sale of Whitney Park to a private owner does not in any way end the State’s interest in protecting these lands. AWA urges the State to engage with the new owners in two critical ways: the exercise of due regulatory diligence by the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) to ensure any development preserves natural open space and ecological integrity; and negotiation of conservation easements to protect the wild forest character of the parcel and ensure reasonable public access for motorless recreation.
Development on Whitney Park lands falls under the jurisdiction of the APA’s Land Use and Development plan, which establishes strict parameters for development of land according to six classifications. Whitney Park falls under the most restrictive classification, Resource Management, which prioritizes preservation of natural, open space character. In addition to regulating this land under resource management requirements, the APA can require a comprehensive development plan, which is appropriate for a tract of this magnitude. The APA’s recent track record on land protection has not been very good, but New York Governor Kathy Hochul has recommended the appointment of two new APA Board members, each of whom has strong environmental credentials. AWA will support the Governor’s slate and hopes the new members will be confirmed and seated promptly, better positioning the APA to ensure Whitney Park is protected as the precious wild resource it is.
For decades conservation easements have been a critical, effective strategy for protecting private tracts in concert with public Wilderness. For example, to most visitors, the lands in the Adirondack Mountain Reserve or Elk Lake-Clear Pond Preserve, both protected under State conservation easements, are indistinguishable from adjacent “Forever Wild” public Wilderness. All told, New York State protects nearly 800,000 acres of private land in the Adirondacks with conservation easements. Executed with thoughtful consideration of private and public needs, conservation easements can be a win both for the public and for private owners, who can reap a variety of financial benefits.
The decision to enter into a conservation easement is up to the landowner, but AWA urges the State to do everything in its power to facilitate possible easements on Whitney Park lands. According to news reports, the prospective owner is open to discussing conservation easements. The State should get back in line, perhaps with land trusts or other potential partners, to help make easements a win-win solution.
In addition to protecting wild lands, easements can grant public access for appropriate recreation, such as hiking and paddling. This is a critical principle for AWA, which defends the public’s vital interest in wild places. “High end resorts and golf courses are not why people are coming to the Adirondack Park,” said AWA Vice-Chair Kayla White. “This is just continuing the legacy in the Park of our outdoor spaces being commodified and restricted to the ultra-wealthy.” Added Board member Timothy Mount, “The developer was quoted as saying ‘There’s a lot of capable people that appreciate the outdoors and don’t have access to it,’ but these luxury plans are elite. A conservation easement that allows public access would spread the benefits to people who could never afford a high-end resort.”
New York State missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to add a remarkable tract of forests, lakes, ponds and rivers to the Forever Wild public Forest Preserve. AWA calls upon the State to not miss a second chance to protect these lands in perpetuity.
More information about AWA can be found on the organization’s website, http://adirondackwilderness.org.
For media inquiries or interviews, contact Pete Nelson, at tearofclouds@gmail.com.
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Cover photo: View from the Buck Mountain Fire Tower in September 2023 by Janelle Jones. Public forests of the William C. Whitney Wilderness and the privately owned forests of Whitney Park make up the landscape around Little Tupper Lake.
