Sustainable Development on the Slopes: Explaining New York’s First Ballot Question

The New York State Elections are now one week away. From the potentially historic mayoral race in New York City to statewide ballot measures, the environment and preservation of the land are on people’s minds as they enter the ballot booth.

Brad Lander speaking at a Community Gathering at the Ridgewood Democratic Club in Queens, NY. (Credit: Genevieve Hartnett)

In a statement to Radio Catskill, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who cross endorsed fellow Democratic Candidate Zohran Mamdani in the Mayoral Primary this past spring, talked about how care for the land and natural resources will be a central tenet of the incoming city government and in maintaining its symbiotic relationship with Upstate.

“ We are very grateful that upstate is a steward of the water that we drink,” said Lander. “And we need to have a fair relationship in order to keep that land unpolluted, so we keep our water unpolluted, but it’s fair that we do our fair share for you guys. And I’m confident Zohran will make a good deal for upstate.”

But, there is one ballot measure regarding upstate New York that all voters across the state will be asked to vote for, and has many confused about what it is actually asking.

The measure in question concerns the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex in Lake Placid, New York, a state owned facility that is managed by the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA).

The complex which was originally built for the 1932 Lake Placid Winter Olympics spans over 1,200 acres, containing a bobsled track and several Nordic ski trails. While the town of North Elba owns most of the land on which the complex sits, its continued development throughout the last century has also expanded onto 323 acres of State Forest Preserve Land.

According to Zachary Matson of the Adirondack Explorer, this designation has made any trail maintenance that the ORDA wants to do very difficult because many of these projects fall outside the Forever Wild State Protections that preserve some of the most ecologically valuable lands across the state.

A so-called “clean up amendment” of Article 14 of the State Constitution, voting “Yes” on this ballot measure would retroactively bring the entire 2,500 acres of Adirondack Park which holds the Olympic Complex into compliance with the Forever Wild State Protections.

The amendment has passed the State Legislature in consecutive sessions in 2023 and 2025, leaving it up to the state’s vote on November 4th. The proposition is supported by environmental groups including the Adirondack Council, as they say it will continue to protect wildlife in the state forest preserve while still attracting people from all over the world to enjoy the historic site.

While Matson explains that many of these advocates are worried that the language of the ballot measure will confuse voters, their support for this amendment has been a long time coming.

“Mostly because they’ve seen this as a black mark on these protections that they value so much because it hasn’t been accounted for,” said Matson. “Other state run ski sites like Whiteface Mountain or Bel Air, or Gore Mountain, they have the Special Amendments that have been passed. So for whatever quirky reasons, they just never did that at Mount Van Hoevenburg. So that’s what this is an attempt to do.”

Image: An aerial shot of Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid, NY. (Credit: ILoveNY.com)