Repurposed Zoos and Aquariums

Westcoastperson

Westcoastperson

Well-Known Member
5+ year member
I have noticed many great zoos and aquariums use old buildings or already destroyed areas for their sites. Monterey Bay Aquarium is located in an old tuna factory and Bioparc de Doué-la-Fontaine is built in an old quarry. And if you’ve seen images or heard of both you know both are extremely beautiful and well built. I believe this is because both zoos use their adverse landscape and architecture to their advantage to make some absolutely breathtaking and intelligent areas. So are there any other examples of this type of facility? And as we open new zoos in the future and factories/refineries and quarries shut down is this a viable way to build new beautiful facilities?
 
Pairi Daiza uses many parts of the grounds and buildings of a former abbey (already gone for centuries before the park was started) in its structures, exhibits and landscaping, including the tower, the entrance gates, some of the stable buildings and living quarters, the abbey wall, the abbey's fish lakes and so on. Most of the park is constructed around and partially within the old abbey structures.
 
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Cabarceno is also built in a quarry.

Dudley Castle would be a significant one also.

I seem to recall seeing a zoo on here in a thread about Europe's top zoos and it may have been in Spain or France and was built in an old ruin of a castle or similar?
 
The Maubeuge zoo in France is built on and includes parts of the old city fortifications. I believe there is at least one more example of a similar situation (or as mentioned, a castle or something like that) in France, but I don't remember which zoo.
 
The St Louis Aquarium is in the former train station.

Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium (now a SeaLife McAquarium) in Auckland is built in former sewage storage tanks.
 
I can’t believe I also forgot to mention St. Louis Aquarium in the old train station earlier but that is another example(edit: cross post with swan). So many of the zoos brought up already are extremely popular and well known so I raise my question from before is this a viable way of building new zoos and aquariums in the future?
 
The Freeport-McMoRan Audubon Species Survival Center in New Orleans, Louisiana is on the site of the old Audubon reproductive research facility, which was the site of an ammunition depot during World War II, which prior to the Civil War, was also the site of one of the largest sugar plantations in the southern United States. There are relics of all of the former incarnations of the property scattered across the grounds— research labs, ammunition bunkers and railway lines, and ruins of old plantation buildings.
 
A lot of the smaller British zoos (and a few of the bigger ones too) were built around old country homes and the attached estates. These often had walled gardens, which make good locations for small mammal enclosures and aviaries. Barns and other farm structures are often adapted for animal housing. The original house is often adapted for restaurants, admin or staff accommodation.

Reserve Zoologique de Calviac in southern France was built on the site of an abandoned village, with the entrance building being one of the original dwellings.
 
MRJ said:
A lot of the smaller British zoos (and a few of the bigger ones too) were built around old country homes and the attached estates. These often had walled gardens, which make good locations for small mammal enclosures and aviaries. Barns and other farm structures are often adapted for animal housing. The original house is often adapted for restaurants, admin or staff accommodation.

Reserve Zoologique de Calviac in southern France was built on the site of an abandoned village, with the entrance building being one of the original dwellings.
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I’d go so far as to say that at least half of all British zoos are built on old estates or the lands of country homes, manor houses and castles, there are certainly too many to list here.
 
Prague zoo was built on former agricultural land (orchards and vineyards) donated by a rich landowner/farmer. Few traces of old times remain.

  • Former millrace belonging to a 3-storey water mill has been repurposed into ponds for zoo waterfowl and pelicans. (The mill itself was built before year 1500 and went out of use around 1848, nowadays the main building has private luxury apartments and is located just outside zoo areal). An original old underground watter supply canal from that time is still used to get water from river for zoo ponds and plant watering.
  • The cafe near cassowary pen used to be a house of vineyard administrator (ca 17th century).
  • The lone house on hill behind giraffe pen used to host a wine press and wine production (17th century or older) and now has apartments for invited zoo guests.
 
Some US zoos, such as Beardsley and Bronx, are built on land that was previously the private estates of wealthy families.

At least part of the Paignton Zoo in the UK is built in an old quarry. The Takin exhibit is literally an old quarry wall.

The Maritime Aquarium in CT is built inside an old iron works factory.

~Thylo
 
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