San Diego Zoo Sanford's Childrens Zoo complex, opening 2021

jayjds2 said:
The plans for the new Children’s Zoo have been released.

$30M record gift will jumpstart a new Children's Zoo, opening in 2021

My thoughts: the Children’s Zoo should not be a top priority, certainly not at this cost... Urban Jungle and the bear grottos/monkey cages require more urgent attention imo.
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This is remarkable! Nearly 70 mil on a Children's Zoo? Immediately after opening a massive attraction 5 years in making? I could have never expected something like this. The new facility's look San Diego sized and I will be eagerly awaiting the new developments.

I agree that Urban Jungle and Bear Canyon are in need of some redevelopment, but the children's zoos cages and overall exhibit messiness are also in need of being repealed and replaced. Still this is a massive development that I could have never imagined, and I thought that we were just getting the new animal house for the ambassadors.
 
$30M record gift will jumpstart a new Children's Zoo, opening in 2021

Just announced earlier today, a $69Million (!) renovation to the Children's Zoo. Right after finishing the zoos most expensive project in their history - in the form of Africa Rocks - the zoo is topping that with what will then be most pricey project at San Diego. Here are the details!

Coming 2020:
Before the main children's zoo opens the following year, some "smaller" projects will be coming.
- A new $5 million renovation to the Komodo Dragon exhibit
- A new $4 million humming bird walkthrough aviary.

Coming 2021:
This is when the main Children's Zoo will open. It will feature four different zones in the area.
  • Desert: Just beyond the entrance will be a dung beetle globe fountain, rope climb and an animal care facility adjacent to an exhibit featuring prairie dogs, burrowing owls and fennec foxes.
  • Temperate Forest: To the east is the 25-foot-high treehouse that will be accessible to the handicapped and an exhibit on coatis (a member of the raccoon family) and Patagonian cavies (a rodent that resembles a cross between a rabbit and a deer).
  • Wetland Marsh: At the south end will be a two-story “animal ambassador” building where animals stay before and after they accompany keepers on walks around the zoo and to schools, hospitals and other offsite destinations. There’s also a walk-through aviary; floating dock over an underwater viewing area; and a building housing reptiles, amphibians and fish.
  • Tropical Forest: The west side includes a treetop walkway inserted among 70-foot mature ficus trees. The invertebrate and subterranean exhibit building includes the beehive, flying insects and a naked mole rat tunnel.
Are you excited for the new Children's zoo complex? What are your hopes for it?
 
pachyderm pro said:
This is remarkable! Nearly 70 mil on a Children's Zoo? Immediately after opening a massive attraction 5 years in making? I could have never expected something like this.
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Considering what they charge for admission, I find it neither remarkable or unexpected. I do, however, find it unbelievably wasteful. $70 million could build an entirely new zoo. It could save a dozen species of frog or three dozen species of invertebrate. It could be used as cost waivers for low-income San Diego residents to come visit.

Note that I’m not against the idea of renovating the children’s zoo, I just think the price tag is ridiculous.
 
Coelacanth18 said:
Considering what they charge for admission, I find it neither remarkable or unexpected. I do, however, find it unbelievably wasteful. $70 million could build an entirely new zoo. It could save a dozen species of frog or three dozen species of invertebrate. It could be used as cost waivers for low-income San Diego residents to come visit.

Note that I’m not against the idea of renovating the children’s zoo, I just think the price tag is ridiculous.
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I don’t think it’s remarkable that they have the money, but rather how there using it! This better be the best Children’s zoo on the planet for this incredible cost.
 
I find it unremarkable that a social network full of teens -> adults is ok with spending the same amount of money on Africa rocks but not a children's zoo. I don't see any problem with this.

I would also like to point out that this is a donor's decision and not the zoo's.
 
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The_UltimateBea said:
I find it unremarkable that a social network full of teens -> adults is ok with spending the same amount of money on Africa rocks but not a children's zoo. I don't see any problem with this.
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I think you mean to say you find it remarkable, not unremarkable?
 
pachyderm pro said:
Are you excited for the new Children's zoo complex? What are your hopes for it?
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As a rule, no, I'm not excited. I can't stand children's zoos. Outside of the de rigueur contact yards, all the exhibits could (and should) be folded into the main zoo. I'm intrigued by the different biomes, but I'll wait to see how it all takes shape.

I am excited by the five-million reno on the Komodo Dragon habitat. I always thought they had a pretty nice space as it is.
 
The_UltimateBea said:
I find it unremarkable that a social network full of teens -> adults is ok with spending the same amount of money on Africa rocks but not a children's zoo. I don't see any problem with this.
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They shouldn’t have spent that much money on Africa Rocks either. I won’t speak for everyone else, but the only reason I was excited about Africa Rocks was the geladas. They could’ve built a fence around a grass meadow with a rock in the middle and I would’ve been satisfied.
 
I'm surprised by some of the negativity here. I for one am just glad that they decided to go with different biomes for this. The old children's zoo just seemed like it was random odds and ends that they put there due to lack of available space elsewhere, some "cute" charismatic animals they could find (Fennec Fox, otters, etc.) , and then some goats and insects. I look forward to seeing this project when it's finished. I also am intrigued by the reptile/insect/fish building in the wetlands marsh area. San Diego has never been particularly big on fish, and any existing fish in the zoo are unsigned (something that bothers me greatly). Hopefully it will be something of an aquarium building.
 
I'm also quite intrigued with this project, even if the price point is outrageous. I didn't like the current Children's zoo when I visited a little over a week ago. I am overjoyed that their tearing the entire thing down and starting from the ground up. Because were all overlooking a major factor in this new development. The best part!

Their destroying the RIO 4D theater!

Seriously, what more could you want? Oh and the animal stuff is cool to.

Jokes aside, just about everything I've seen looks good. The interactive beehive is a nice touch. I'm glad what's arguably the worst part of the area - The scattered about cages for animal ambassadors - will be getting repealed and replaced by a new two-story building. The overall feel of the children's zoo looks to be much more organized and creative than the mess it is now.

However, one part of it is concerning. If you look at the video at the 0:50 mark, you'll see a squirrel monkey walkthrough. It looks boring and bland with about two trees and a dusty ground level. It looks really quite bad and I pray that it comes out better than it looks.

Hopefully after this they'll begin work on replacing bear canyon and urban jungle after this project wraps. Well, time to start planning my next trip to California in 2021!
 
This might be something weird to say or notice, but it sounds to me like the general concept for SDZ's new children's zoo is a lot like what the Franklin Park Zoo wanted to do for theirs, except SDZ has a budget 12x the size of what FPZ's was. It kind of makes me jealous, since the children's zoo at FPZ could have been so much better, but isn't really that good since the zoo always struggles with getting enough money to support their projects. Now for me, SDZ's new children's zoo is like a glimpse into an alternate reality of what could have happened at the Franklin Park Zoo, instead of what was actually built.

(Both are childrens zoos about ending "Nature Deficit Disorder" and are split up into ecosystem zones like wetlands, desert, temperate forest, etc.)
 
Article for the zoo with new map. Of note is the return of pangolins (this time in what appears to be a previously problematic full time situation) and the placement of the 2019 hummingbird aviary inside the children's zoo. I will try to do on overlay of the map on a satellite overview of the zoo to figure out how everything lines up.

Largest Single Gift Received by San Diego Zoo Will Fund $69 Million New Children’s Zoo


Official website for the zoo
Sanford Children's Zoo at the San Diego Zoo
 
The_UltimateBea said:
Article for the zoo with new map. Of note is the return of pangolins (this time in what appears to be a previously problematic full time situation) and the placement of the 2019 hummingbird aviary inside the children's zoo. I will try to do on overlay of the map on a satellite overview of the zoo to figure out how everything lines up.

Largest Single Gift Received by San Diego Zoo Will Fund $69 Million New Children’s Zoo


Official website for the zoo
Sanford Children's Zoo at the San Diego Zoo
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This is tremendous news! Its great to see the scaly mammals branched out to as many zoos as possible. Though I find it a bit strange how there being exhibited outdoors instead of a more practical indoor nocturnal exhibit. Maybe this will mean that they'll bring back the pangolin presentations that everyone loves.
 
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