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 this morning 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.

Bison graze near Roosevelt Arch in the spring. (Jacob W. Frank/Yellowstone National Park)

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.”

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.

Gardner River floodwaters in 2022 obliterated many stretches of Yellowstone National Park’s North Entrance Road, which runs from Gardiner, Mont., to Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyo. (Kyle Stone/National Park Service)

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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