New York voters will decide on a constitutional amendment to authorize a land exchange related to the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex on Nov. 4, 2025.

The amendment was referred to the ballot by the New York State Legislature. In New York, a constitutional amendment is referred to the ballot by passing both chambers of the state legislature in two consecutive sessions. It was introduced as Senate Bill 5540 in the 2023 session and passed both chambers in May and June of 2023. This session, the amendment passed the State Senate on May 31 by 58-0, and passed the Assembly by 144-1, with Asm. Latrice Walker (D) being the no vote.

The amendment would allow for 323 acres of Forest Preserve land at the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex to be used for international-standard Nordic skiing and biathlon trails and related infrastructure. In exchange, the state would be mandated to acquire at least 2,500 acres of new forest land of equal or greater value for the Adirondack Park’s Forest Preserve.

The complex has hosted Olympic events and continues to serve as a regional and international training center for winter sports. According to supporters of the amendment, the land exchange between the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) and the state could resolve a potential violation of the New York State Constitution.

In the New York Constitution, Section 1 of Article 14 says that “lands of the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands.” According to Protect the Adirondacks, an organization supporting the amendment, the construction of the Mountain Pass Lodge, as well as the biathlon stadium and trails, violated Article 14 of the New York Constitution by being built on state forest preserve land.

Protect the Adirondacks stated, “Even though this Constitutional Amendment is being passed ‘after-the-fact’, it remedies the past violations of Article 14, Section 1, and it lays out the parameters for future management of Mount Van Hoevenberg.”

In addition to the Mount Van Hoevenberg Winter Sports Complex, ORDA is also responsible for three ski areas owned by the state, which are built on forest preserve—Gore Mountain and Whiteface Mountain in the Adirondack Park, and Belleayre Mountain in the Catskill Park. Each of these areas is governed by Article 14, Section 1 of the Constitution, providing for the management of activities like skiing on preserved land. Voters approved the construction of ski trails at Whiteface Mountain in both 1941 and 1987, while approving similar construction on Gore Mountain and Belleayre Mountain in 1947.

Protect the Adirondacks mentioned these previous measures, saying, “At all three of these ski areas, the state is allowed to build and operate facilities that would otherwise be prohibited on the Forest Preserve, subject to specific limits in the constitutional amendments. Since taking over the management of these facilities, ORDA has successfully operated them within the bounds set by these amendments. However, the nonconforming state facilities at Mt. Van Hoevenberg are not expressly authorized, nor are they subject to constitutional limits, like the other three facilities. This proposed amendment would help to right historical wrongs.”

If approved by voters, the amendment would take effect on January 1, 2026.