New York voters to decide on Mt. Van Hoevenberg land amendment

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (WCAX) - Election Day is just about a week away, and New York voters will cast ballots that will determine future upgrades at a historic Olympic property in Lake Placid.

A constitutional amendment on the ballot aims to rectify legal issues surrounding the recent construction of Mt. Van Hoevenberg’s Mountain Pass Lodge, along with the new biathlon stadium and other trails.

“It was all done without specific authorization under the New York state Constitution, like has been done at Whiteface, Gore, and Belleayre,” said the Olympic Regional Development Authority’s Joe Martens.

Proposition 1 asks voters to approve any future land alterations on more than 300 acres of land at the mountain. In return, the state would put roughly 2,500 acres of land back into the forest prese