Yellowstone receives record $105 million gift for infrastructure, conservation, access

Yellowstone National Park and Tallgrass, a Colorado company building an AI power hub near Cheyenne, have launched a $105 million conservation and stewardship fund for the country’s first national park, calling it the largest single private gift in the agency’s history.

The park announced creation of the fund Monday in conjunction with its nonprofit conservation partner, Yellowstone Forever, and Tallgrass, a Blackstone Infrastructure portfolio company. The fund will establish a permanent source of support for long-term stewardship, the groups said.

Among the projects the effort will fund is a $35 million visitor center at Norris Geyser Basin, Steven Davidson, senior vice president at Tallgrass said in an interview with WyoFile.

“There’s no place for you to sit and engage with a ranger directly,” he said of the sprawling basin. The center will offer opportunities for experiences that are “a bit more interactive,” he said.

The fund will advance conservation and research, invest in infrastructure and expand opportunities for Wyoming residents and students to visit the 2.2 million-acre reserve. The groups said the donation will establish the Tallgrass WYld Yellowstone Initiative, named for the company that’s been operating in Wyoming for more than a decade.

“The focus is for Wyoming,” Davidson said. “If you are a Wyoming kid, family, we are going to target these programs for you. Let’s be proud and selfish for Wyoming kids.”

Gov. Gordon called the gift “extraordinary” and said it will help Wyoming students better connect with Yellowstone.

“Ninety-three percent of the park is in Wyoming, and so few of our school kids in Wyoming really know what a remarkable place that is,” he said in an interview. That’s because people in Wyoming who love the outdoors “already all have favorite places.”

“We’re blessed with beautiful mountains almost everywhere, and so unless you have a sort of a sense of the history and (of) some of the remarkable stuff about Yellowstone, why would you skip over the Winds or the Absarokas?”

Learning about the migration routes of Yellowstone wildlife puts the park in context with the rest of the state, he said. The education and access elements of the initiative “gives us an opportunity to really talk about the connectivity with all the other great parts of Wyoming,” he said.

At Norris, more interpretation provided at a visitor center would allow visitors to talk about “more than just: You came and saw,” he said. “Talking about the uniqueness of that area is a valuable thing for visitors at the park generally.”

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum called the investment “historic,” and said in a statement it brings together “the best of American enterprise and conservation.”

“We’re grateful to Blackstone, Tallgrass and Yellowstone Forever for their partnership and extraordinary commitment,” his statement reads.

For Blackstone, the gift “reflects our belief that infrastructure investment can and should be a force for good, helping us invest in Yellowstone’s future and the growth of the communities that surround it,” Sean Klimczak, the company’s global head of infrastructure said in a statement.

Lisa Diekmann, president and CEO of Yellowstone Forever, called the gift a transformational investment. “It gives us the ability to meet urgent needs today while building enduring support for the research, education, stewardship and visitor infrastructure that will protect this park for generations to come.”

The gift comes at a time of change and challenge for Yellowstone, the country’s first national park. The Park Service estimates $1.2 billion in deferred maintenance and repairs. Barclay Trimble just assumed duties as Acting Superintendent of Yellowstone National Park. He replaced Cam Sholly, who left his post after eight years.

Tallgrass, a “multi-commodity infrastructure” company based in Colorado, operates more than 10,000 miles of pipelines. Early this year it received approval to build an AI data center south of Cheyenne. Google will be Tallgrass’ partner, according to Measured AI, a recent switch from original partner Cruso.

Tallgrass is building the gas-fired Cheyenne Power Hub for the 1.8 gigawatt project. Tallgrass’ $7 billion project is located on more than 1,000 acres in the Switchgrass industrial park south of Cheyenne. The data center will occupy more than 700 acres, according to plans. The data center has faced pushback from rural neighbors in Laramie County concerned about lost views and potential water contamination.

On Monday, Tallgrass President and CEO Crystal Heter said, in a statement announcing the donation to Yellowstone, that the company is proud to strengthen the park’s connection with the next generation.

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This story was originally published by WyoFile and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.