Dragon Springs, also known as the Mountain,[1] is a 427-acre (1.73 km2) compound in Deerpark, New York, US that is the headquarters of the global Falun Gong new religious movement and the Shen Yun performance arts troupe.
[3] Dragon Springs is primarily in Deerpark, New York,[4] near the hamlet of Cuddebackville, north of Port Jervis, in Orange County.
[5] Near Dragon Springs, in Middletown, was an office for the Falun Gong media extension The Epoch Times, which published a special local edition.
This led the Deerpark Planning Board to unanimously deny a six-month extension for a special-use permit for Dragon Springs.
[19] In 2018 Dragon Springs Buddhist Inc. was fined $7,500 since it failed to comply with a local construction law requiring the installation of a sprinkler system for wooden buildings over four stories tall.
[20][21] Local residents opposed the expansion because it would increase traffic and reduce the rural character of the area in addition to the negative environmental effects.
[23] After visiting in 2019, scholar Andrew Junker noted that "the secrecy of Dragon Springs was obvious and a source of tension for the town."
Junker added that Dragon Springs's website says its restricted access is for security reasons and that the site claims the compound contains orphans and refugees.