Adirondack Park Agency Executive Team

Executive Director

Barbara Rice has served as the Adirondack Park Agency's Executive Director since March 2022. She is responsible for the administration of the Adirondack Park Agency Act and the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan. Executive Director Rice oversees a staff of 44 employees and works closely with the Agency Board on regional land use planning policy.

A native Adirondacker, Barbara Rice has extensive background in local government administration, land use planning and community development. She served in Governor Hochul's Executive Chamber as Assistant Secretary for Economic Development where she oversaw expansion of broadband internet in unserved and underserved areas of New York State through the implementation of the $500 million dollar New York Broadband Program, supervised $265 million in capital projects through the Olympic Regional Development Authority in preparation for the 2023 World University Games, and helped launch the Upstate Cellular Task Force which identified solutions and policies to improve cellular communication in upstate New York.

Executive Director Rice gained invaluable local government experience in her roles as a Franklin County Legislator/Chair and as a Saranac Lake Village Trustee. She has also served as: Adirondack Park Agency Board Member; North Country Regional Economic Development Council Member; Adirondack Health Foundation Trustee; and Saranac Lake Local Development Corporation Director.

Executive Director Rice earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Magna Cum Laude, from SUNY Plattsburgh; an Associates of Science, Physician Assistant Program from Albany Medical College; and a Post Baccalaureate Premedical Program from Bennington College. 

 

Deputy Director for Administration

Deputy Director for Administration Elaine Caldwell has worked at the Adirondack Park Agency since April 2007.  In this role she is responsible for all Agency fiscal management, contract administration, human resources, facility management, and office support. This includes determination of division fiscal allocations, fiscal record keeping, determination of the availability of funds for division programs and computerization of fiscal records. In addition, the Deputy Director has oversight of agency contracts, grant administration and works in coordination with the Executive Director on staffing needs.

Deputy Director Caldwell brings her 20 plus years of Human Resource and Administrative experience to her position at the Agency.  Prior to her time at the Agency, Deputy Director Caldwell was a Chief Clerk 1 in the New York State Unified Court System (Essex County Surrogate’s Court) and an Administrative Director/Legal Administrator at the Albany Law School of Union University, Justice and Law Center.

Deputy Director Caldwell earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from SUNY Plattsburgh; Associate in Applied Science from North Country Community College; and an Advanced Strategic Human Resource Management Certificate from the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University.

Agency Counsel

Agency Counsel Damion K. L. Stodola oversees the Agency’s Legal Division which consists of the Office of Counsel, Legal Services Unit, and the Jurisdictional Inquiry Unit. He has served in this role since February 2024. Agency Counsel advises all staff and the Board on legal matters related to the Adirondack Park Agency Act, Freshwater Wetlands Act, and the Wild, Scenic and Recreational Rivers System Act. This involves providing legal advice on permit compliance, private and public land use planning, and enforcement actions. He also assists the Attorney General with Agency litigation.

Counsel Stodola is a seasoned trial and appellate litigator with extensive government and private experience. He most recently served as the General Counsel with the New York City Commission on Human Rights, where he interpreted federal, state, and local statutes within the highly complex regulatory environment of New York City. Prior to working at the Commission on Human Rights, Counsel Stodola served as Senior Counsel for the New York City Office of the Corporation Counsel in its Appeals Division as well as in its Labor and Employment Law Division, where he defended the City of New York, its agencies, commissioners, and all levels of staff in all aspects of civil and municipal litigation including review of administrative action under CPLR article 78. Prior to his government service, Counsel Stodola spent a decade working with several international law firms.

Counsel Stodola earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from McGill University, and earned degrees in both Common Law and Civil Law from McGill University’s Faculty of Law. He is admitted to practice law in the State of New York.

Deputy Director for Planning

Deputy Director for Planning Megan Phillips has worked for the Adirondack Park Agency since January 2022. In this role she is responsible for overseeing the Agency’s administration of the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan; coordinating with the Department of Environmental Conservation in the preparation and review of unit management plans; supervising the state land team in their work to provide guidance and interpretation of the Master Plan to the Agency Board, other state agencies, and park stakeholders; reviewing proposed state agency projects on state lands; and for the classification or reclassification of state lands. She also works with Local Government Services and GIS staff to evaluate proposals for amendments to the private land use and development plan and works on long-range strategic planning initiatives in collaboration with other Division leaders.

She brings over a decade of professional experience centered on the nexus between people and the environment to the role. Her prior work experience includes more than seven years in New York State government (including in the Executive Chamber and at the Department of Environmental Conservation) as well as holding leadership roles in the non-profit sector.

A native Midwesterner, Deputy Director Phillips earned both an undergraduate degree in Conservation Biology and a master’s degree in Water Resources Management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Deputy Director for Regulatory Programs

David Plante, AICP CEP joined the Adirondack Park Agency as the Deputy Director of Regulatory Programs in February of 2023.  The Regulatory Programs Division of the APA implements the statutory and regulatory provisions of the Adirondack Park Agency Act, the Freshwater Wetlands Act and the Wild, Scenic and Recreational Rivers Act within the Blue Line. His responsibilities include supervising project review staff and overseeing coordination with other involved federal, state, and local agencies to help ensure all project permit applications are complete and permit reviews are conducted thoroughly and in accordance with applicable regulations and design standards.

Deputy Director Plante is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners with over seventeen years of professional experience in environmental permitting, environmental impact assessment, historic resources analysis, threated/endangered species survey & consultation, wetland & stream delineation/mitigation, land use planning and zoning within the Adirondack Park, across New York State and in eleven other states. He possesses the Advanced Specialty Certification as a Certified Environmental Planner from the American Institute of Certified Planners, which recognizes certified planners that achieve an exceptional level of expertise in the art and science of environmental planning. Mr. Plante serves as President of the New York Planning Federation, an organization dedicated to training municipal planning board and zoning board of appeals members across the state.

Deputy Director Plante holds a Master of Urban and Regional Planning Degree from the University of Albany and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Environmental Studies from Siena College

Director, Public Information

Keith McKeever, Director Public Information, has worked at the Adirondack Park Agency since October 2003. In this role he is responsible for media and public relations and serves as Public Hearing Officer for private and public land actions including state land classifications; private land amendments; variance hearings; and public informational meetings.

Prior to his appointment to the Agency, McKeever was a Program Administer in the Governor’s Office for Small Cities. This New York State agency was responsible for administering the U.S. Housing and Urban Renewal’s Community Development Block Grant Program. He began his career as a Planner in the Rensselaer County Planning Office and was promoted to Geographic Information System Team Leader.

Keith McKeever earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and a Minor in Communication from SUNY Plattsburgh.