New Hampshire’s largest conservation group is siding with Governor John Lynch in a lawsuit launched by the operators of the Mount Sunapee ski resort.
The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests says it opposes any expansion of the leased ski area, which is owned by the state and has been leased to Tim and Diane Mueller since 1998.
The Forest Society purchased the land and gave it to the state in 1948 for public use.
The Muellers are suing the state, claiming Lynch violated their lease agreement by refusing to consider the expansion plan. For six years, they have tried to expand the resort to include 175 acres of state park land, thus connecting the ski resort to 700 acres they own in Goshen.
Forest Society officials say they don’t have a problem with potential changes on the current leased land but object to an expansion beyond those boundaries.