Trump administration considers land swap for Yosemite parcel with private developer

The U.S. Interior Department is said to be reviewing a plan to transfer a 0.25-mile parcel of land within Yosemite National Park to Kingsbarn Realty Capital, a Nevada-based developer. National Park Service staff have been examining how the agency could facilitate the exchange, according to documents and unnamed sources cited by a news outlet.

Kingsbarn already owns an 83-acre tract adjacent to the park, which it purchased in 2024. The company’s chief executive, Jeff Pori, has expressed interest in constructing a short road that would link the parcel to a main Yosemite route, shortening the current 10-mile detour required to reach the site.

Officials from the Interior Department have reportedly suggested offering the park land in return for an equivalently valued parcel elsewhere in California. Senior political leaders in the department are said to support the proposal, creating tension within the National Park Service.

In response, an Interior Department spokesperson said there has been no political pressure to achieve a predetermined outcome and denied that the agency is secretly working to hand over park land to a private developer.

Environmental groups and elected officials have criticized the plan. A spokesperson for Save Our Parks called it part of a broader effort to privatize public lands, while California’s congressional delegation has voiced opposition, emphasizing that national parks should remain protected for future generations.

The department indicated that no final decision has been made and that any land exchange or access proposal would be subject to federal laws, regulations, environmental review and public notification requirements.