Bristol Zoo (Closed) Bristol Zoo news 2021

Sorry but people bemoaning the zoos decision to close because they have ‘great memories of going there as a child’ are missing the point massively.

Also, at the moment, the zoo is competing against itself with Wild Place, which is a very strange thing to do when running a business.

Why shouldn’t the zoo capitalise on its real estate, even though it will dismay local residents,
which is clearly the driver behind the post above.

I for one can’t wait to see what they do with Wild Place, using the revenue they gain from the sale of the zoo, and anyone who cares for the wellbeing of animals needs to put nostalgia aside. The zoo has been tired for years and I said many many pages ago on one of the Bristol Zoo threads that it should close and relocate to WP (which was shot down at the time). It is restrained on all four sides, has no growth potential and will be left behind as competitors like NAZF and Longleat grow, catering for families with money to spend.
 
Clunes said:
I said many many pages ago on one of the Bristol Zoo threads that it should close and relocate to WP (which was shot down at the time)
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I don't see why that's necessary right now? Bristol Zoo and Wild Place are still separate entities (per se), and will be for at least another year. Even then, once closed, I'm sure people will post news regarding the development of the Clifton site.
 
Clunes said:
Also, at the moment, the zoo is competing against itself with Wild Place, which is a very strange thing to do when running a business.
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Well, you might as well say ZSL is competing with itself by keeping both London and Whipsnade open :P before the financial issues arising from the pandemic forced the issue, the intended plan of action (to gradually develop Wild Place and add more and more "big" species whilst focusing Bristol on smaller species and play to *those* strengths until such a time that Wild Place had the facilities in place to take up that mantle too) was a perfectly good one.

As it stands, Bristol will be closing long before this point in time, and as such aspects such as the choice reptile, amphibian, fish and invertebrate collections risk being dispersed across the UK and not replaced at Wild Place.... at least not anytime soon. Dismissing anyone who bemoans the idea of this happening as nostalgic fools who are missing the point and don't care about the wellbeing of animals is both unfair and rash, methinks - and I say this as someone whose first visit to the collection came only a decade ago, and who has subsequently visited only another 3 or 4 times, and therefore not someone with any particular ties or long-standing affection for the place.
 
Not sure comparing ZSL and Whipsnade which are over 30 miles apart and have a much larger population within an hours drive is a great comparison.

and I didn’t use the word ‘fool’, although someone that lives in Clifton that wants the zoo to remain open is probably saying this with their own house price in mind.

There has been a lot in the local press about the zoo relocating. As with most reporting these days, there is a place to leave comments and half of the comments are usually about how terrible it’s is that it is closing as they went there when they were a child, and half the comments are about the type of development that will be built on the footprint.

the decision to relocate isn’t (entirely) pandemic related. They have been losing money for years… I don’t know why as it’s usually busy there, but perhaps Wild Place makes a loss and they needed to consolidate for that reason? Either way, WP is huge and BZ is constrained. It was always a no-brainer what would happen in the long term.
 
Proposal for World’s First Virtual Zoo

New lido and 'wild island' for virtual zoo proposed for Bristol

A circular lido, ‘wild island’ and 100-foot viewing tower would all be part of the “magic” of the world’s first virtual zoo if it is created at the current site of Bristol Zoo.

But there would be no parking at the visitor attraction, according to members of the Our World Bristol campaign who set out the case for their £75million project for the Clifton site - an alternative to the zoo’s plans for housing - at a public meeting last night.
 
Zoofan15 said:
Article Re. Proposal for World’s First Virtual Zoo

New lido and 'wild island' for virtual zoo proposed for Bristol

A circular lido, ‘wild island’ and 100-foot viewing tower would all be part of the “magic” of the world’s first virtual zoo if it is created at the current site of Bristol Zoo.

But there would be no parking at the visitor attraction, according to members of the Our World Bristol campaign who set out the case for their £75million project for the Clifton site - an alternative to the zoo’s plans for housing - at a public meeting last night.
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Sounds..interesting..
 
On the local news this morning the zoo seems to have confirmed that the Clifton site will become a public garden and not used for housing. I wonder where this leaves them financialy?
 
Ned said:
On the local news this morning the zoo seems to have confirmed that the Clifton site will become a public garden and not used for housing. I wonder where this leaves them financialy?
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As above, the provision of a new 'public' space is often a sneaky ploy by developers to obtain planning permission. Where I live in London, almost every new block of flats is accompanied by a bit of 'public' landscaping.
 
That makes more sense, all that was mentioned was that the zoo had been criticised for it's housing plans and that the site would be a public garden.
 
Clunes said:
I think they have just said the gardens will be open/free to the public during daylight hours but they still seem to be planning to build 235 homes, which will hopefully raise the capital needed to build the new zoo.
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I'm imagining houses/homes built on all the existing built- up areas of the zoo e.g. the seals and coasts, nocturnal house, lions, reptiles, aviaries etc where these aren't suitable for any sort of conversion into dwellings and are knocked down. But that listed buildings will be converted while the central lawns, flower beds, lake etc would all stay essentially the same?.
 
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gentle lemur said:
The zoo has published some details and artists' impressions at Historic grounds will be open to the public for free, in new Bristol Zoo Gardens plans | Bristol Zoo
Details of public consultation events are at Public Consultation Event - Tuesday 16 November and Zoom presentation - Tuesday 23 November I expect they will be lively.
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Paddle boarding on the lake eh..;) I can see what looks like the old Elephant (now) gorilla house carefully included in the background. Luxury flats in where the gorillas used to be? And it appears to show more modern blocks along the edges of the site.
 
Pertinax said:
Paddle boarding on the lake eh..;) I can see what looks like the old Elephant (now) gorilla house carefully included in the background. Luxury flats in where the gorillas used to be? And it appears to show more modern blocks along the edges of the site.
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@Pertinax it is strange to think Humans will use Gorilla Island, when it has inhabited Gorillas for over 2 decades. At least I presume this lake is Gorilla Island.
 
The Hedgehog said:
@Pertinax it is strange to think Humans will use Gorilla Island, when it has inhabited Gorillas for over 2 decades. At least I presume this lake is Gorilla Island.
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The lake is where there are now several islands for Callitrichids and Gibbons. It used to be a stretch of open water with a lot of waterfowl and some pelicans.
 
The Hedgehog said:
@Pertinax it is strange to think Humans will use Gorilla Island, when it has inhabited Gorillas for over 2 decades. At least I presume this lake is Gorilla Island.
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Lake in the centre of the zoo. Nothing to do with Gorilla Island. As an animal exhibit with no further purpose I'm sure that will be remodelled someway.
 
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