I would be interested to hear more about this. Besides a few minor tweaks (I'm not sure why Feathers and Scales is sticking around and the amount of service paths is incredibly unnecessary) If all of this became reality Brookfield would likely be one of the top five zoos in America imo.
When I visited Brookfield in 2018, Feathers and Scales was one of my favourite exhibits at the zoo. The large rainforest aviary was one of the best exhibits at the zoo, and free-raging Currasow was an interesting touch. I would be sorely disappointed if this exhibit was no longer at the zoo.
The Tropical Aviary is actually one of my favorite exhibits in the zoo. However, besides that there isn't a whole lot else the building has to offer. Reptile exhibits are insignificant and uninteresting and the rest of the bird exhibits are cool, but can easily be displayed elsewhere in the zoo.
That's fair, the rainforest aviary is the main reason why I like this house so much. I thought the desert aviary was quite nice as well, although I agree that the rest of the house is fairly insignificant.
This is a good idea, I think the addition of an inside/outside Ocelot enclosure, tamanduas, some smaller herps (not sure about Crocodiles, they might be too large) and perhaps even a nocturnal exhibit as well. I wouldn't mess with the rainforest aviary, it makes for a perfect centerpiece to the house.
Master Plans work like that. They are never completed but they also take a long time to be abandoned. It is the zoo's Master Plan until there is a new one
Very true, however the Illinois Farm exhibit that was originally planned was scrapped and replaced by the Wild Encounters Children's Zoo, a completely different exhibit than what was originally intended. Same goes for the planned Japanese macaque exhibit, which was instead turned into a nature plaza. I get things will change as time goes on, but this shows that its hard to know for sure how strictly the zoo is following this plan, and considering it's been a decade since anything listed here was built its easy to dismiss it as a case of could've, would've, should've.
And the 2019 Strategic Plan calls for a new Master Plan
What a shame.
Do tell. I've never heard of this proposed aquarium.
Back in the early 90's, Disney planned to build a large ocean-themed theme park, with the centrepiece being a massive aquarium named Oceana. Read about it here.
That would have been fun. Disney had lots of ambitious plans in the 90s that didn't come to fruition.Back in the early 90's, Disney planned to build a large ocean-themed theme park, with the centrepiece being a massive aquarium named Oceana. Read about it here.
There was also an area called Venture Reefs, home to more aquariums as well as a shark tank where you'd be able to be lowered into it via a cage.
Not just that but everything in that master plan never came to fruition because the zoo got a new director in 2016, only the carousel, nature play area, and the renovation to discovery bay. It’s sad to see so many potential great exhibits, like the Africa trail (as mentioned), Asian highlands, and the tropics trail expansion. It’s sad to see any planed exhibit not become a reality, but plans change and who knows? They might bring the plan back in the future
