Trump admin mulls deal to give away part of Yosemite park

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's administration is considering giving a section of the renowned Yosemite National Park to a private developer, a lawyer for the company confirmed on Friday. The National Park Service has been holding talks with Nevada-based Kingsbarn Realty Capital to build an access road from an 83-acre private property just outside the park to Yosemite's entrance, in exchange for land elsewhere, lawyer Lanny Davis said. The news was first reported by the outlet NOTUS and caused an uproar among conservationists and opposition Democrats, who have fiercely objected to moves by the administration to roll back protections of public lands — including pushing to reinstate road building and logging in national forests. But Davis, who described himself as a lifelong 'progressive Democrat,' framed the road as a green move, on the grounds that it would shorten trips to and from the currently undeveloped property, cutting emissions compared to current circuitous route. Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2026