At its May 2020 board meeting, Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve elected Richard L. (Rick) Hoffman of Easton, Washington County, to join its board of directors and Sunita Halasz of Saranac Lake to join its advisory council.

The meeting was conducted via Zoom due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Rick Hoffman is a land use planner and attorney who has worked at the municipal and state levels of government in Oregon and New York, as well in private practice. Most recently he was associate attorney for the New York State Department of State where his duties included smart growth, coastal management, nonpoint source water pollution, municipal law and brownfield opportunity areas. He was Counsel to the New York City Watershed Protection and Partnership Council. Hoffman was Secretary of State designee and ex-officio member of the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) for ten years. He was also employed at the APA as both a land use planner and attorney.

Hoffman is principal author of Local Open Space Planning Guide (2004) and Legal Aspects of Municipal Historic Preservation (2002), both New York State publications.

Sunita Halasz was named to the group’s Advisory Council. She holds a Master’s degree in Forest Ecology from Cornell University and was a staff member at the Adirondack Park Agency in the Resource Analysis and Scientific Services division, where she helped with EPA-funded wetland mapping projects, local government outreach, review of large lot subdivisions in Resource Management areas, and review of State Land Unit Management Plans. At present, she serves on the board of Historic Saranac Lake, helps to coordinate North Country Homeschooling, and volunteers as a youth sports coach.

“We are honored to add such talented, accomplished individuals to our board and group of advisors,” said Adirondack Wild’s managing partner David Gibson.  “Both Rick and Sunita offer us great insight and work experience to guide our understanding and actions with respect to the regional planning, ecological integrity and wild character of the Adirondack Park.”

Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve is a not-for-profit, membership organization which acts on behalf of wilderness and wild land values and stewardship. More on the web at www.adirondackwild.org.