Besides the fact that you can't simply take over a public park...
Cities in need of zoos
- Thread starter elefante
- Start date
Besides the fact that you can't simply take over a public park...
Except for an empty space next to a ball park, that is. This is where the zoo is really supposed to be located at the park:
Except for an empty space next to a ball park, that is. This is where the zoo is really supposed to be located at the park:
But you need permission first.
You're right. How?
ceph
Member
My town of Grand Junction, Colorado will be getting one in a few years. A group called the Grand Valley Zoological Quest have been behind it for the past couple of years. They wanted to start with 3 phases. Phase 1 is a 1.5 acre bi-level indoor rain forest that would include 4 different rain forests from across the world. Phase 2 is a western Colorado section featuring western Colorado wildlife that included brown bears, mountain lions, bobcats, jack rabbits, beaver, and herds of deer and elk. Phase 3 is an aquarium. From there they would have future plans of expanding. The estimated cost for all of this was $16 million. They don't say how much they have made so far from donations and grants/funds they have received from local businesses. Lately the plan is to have an indoor zoological center. They have recently said that the plans are all finished. the proposed sketches have been drawn for the center and all the animals have already been selected. All they have left is to get the rest of the funds to start building. I'm not sure where they are putting this. I have heard several different locations. I have also heard that they are just trying to buy a certain building and remodel it into the zoological center. Here is their website if anybody is interested and wants to learn more, perhaps donate them some more money so you can have a new zoo to visit here in my town 
Grand Valley Zoological Quest
Grand Valley Zoological Quest
You could run an expriment. Go to the park with some heavy machinery and start building the zoo. If nobody stops you and people start pitching in then you can figure that you don't need permission. If you find yourself in jail then you probably did need permission and you can ask then how to go about getting it.
It might be like the scene in "Rushmore" where Max decides to build an aquarium on the baseball diamond.
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@ 100 acres the Oakland Zoo is physically large, but is lacking in a significant variety of animal species. The bulk of their collection is made up of birds, reptiles & amphibians, and arthropods. As such their operational costs are significantly less than, say, the San Diego Zoo; or, even San Francisco.
This may change, of course, when the North American expansion is completed.
Arizona Docent said:
Ah, you beat me to it. I was considering this, and if the SDZS opened a third gate it would draw people in. Especially if it allowed them to completely display their massive menagerie. Probably not enough to zero out their operating costs, but it would definitely draw.
The Oakland Zoo's collection is not primarily birds and arthropods. They have a herd of African elephants, giraffes, elands, zebras, lions, tigers, sun bears, bison, dromedaries, spotted hyenas, sika deer, chimpanzees, baboons, vervets, etc.
All true. Mammals, however, are dominated by the aforementioned types of species in pure numbers. The larger point was: If Long Beach, CA was to want a zoo the city fathers would need to be selective in the animals they chose to present. All things being equal between the two cities (they're not), they'd need to keep operational costs down.
DavidBrown said:
I was unaware that this species was under represented in North American zoos! At some point in the past year, however, Oakland Zoo administrators have changed the signage to "Green Monkeys."
ungulate nerd
Well-Known Member
One city that i can think of is Fountain valley, CA. Fountain valley could use a game farm like Catskill game farm (closed) or like Alberta game farm (closed), they have a reptile zoo/pet store known as Prehistoric Pets that is indoors and in a shopping center, in that regard i think fountain valley could use a game farm focussing on Hoofstock, Elephants, Ratites, and Macropods and other "game farm animals", besides complementing Prehistoric Pets which concentrates on reptiles, amphibians, insects, and arachnids, it could also complement the nearby Santa Ana Zoo which has a focus on monkeys and other primates, the land i found in fountain valley for my game farm idea is Mile Square Regional Park, it is 1 mile on each side and is 607 acres inside.
Another city i can think of is Irvine, CA. the location i found in Irvine is near freeways, a train station, an airport, and it is also close to a 40 acre outdoor shopping center known as the irvine spectrum. The location i found is a former military base, its a great place for a large major zoo, the land is a sprawling 2,000 acres and has a backdrop of the saddleback mountains, the mountains in the background and vast acreage make for an all around beautiful zoo, with various forms of transportation the location is a great draw for guests, Like Fountain Valley, Irvine is 30 minutes away from Disneyland, also like fountain valley irvine is Between Los Angeles Zoo and the ZSSD Parks.
Another city i can think of is Irvine, CA. the location i found in Irvine is near freeways, a train station, an airport, and it is also close to a 40 acre outdoor shopping center known as the irvine spectrum. The location i found is a former military base, its a great place for a large major zoo, the land is a sprawling 2,000 acres and has a backdrop of the saddleback mountains, the mountains in the background and vast acreage make for an all around beautiful zoo, with various forms of transportation the location is a great draw for guests, Like Fountain Valley, Irvine is 30 minutes away from Disneyland, also like fountain valley irvine is Between Los Angeles Zoo and the ZSSD Parks.
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Right, this isn't a city, or even in the USA.
My home town of Dorchester, here in the UK, could really do with a zoo. Then perhaps they would give me a job.
We nearly had a bird garden down the road in Weymouth 20-odd years ago, but large methane deposits were discovered under the site, and it didn't happen. [Imagine, someone strikes a match, BANG feathers everywhere].
My home town of Dorchester, here in the UK, could really do with a zoo. Then perhaps they would give me a job.
We nearly had a bird garden down the road in Weymouth 20-odd years ago, but large methane deposits were discovered under the site, and it didn't happen. [Imagine, someone strikes a match, BANG feathers everywhere].
IanRRobinson
Well-Known Member
Many non-UK posters would be, I'd imagine, surprised at how many major UK cities lack a major zoo; in fact, only London, Bristol and Edinburgh now have one.
Allowances might be made for Southampton/Portsmouth (with Marwell nearby), Oxford (Cotswold Wildlife Park, ditto), Birmingham ( which has a nice small collection, with a reasonable medium sized zoo -Dudley-and a safari park with quite a few unusual species-West Midland-within striking distance) and above all Liverpool (Chester can only be half an hour's drive from the Merseyside border).
But that leaves Cardiff, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and Glasgow as cities with populations well over six figures (in Glasgow's case pushing towards seven) with not much more than pets' corners and the odd aviary.
Maybe one reason why we have such a vociferous anti-zoo lobby in the UK is that we have a large urban population, many of whom are nowhere very close to a substantial zoo.
Allowances might be made for Southampton/Portsmouth (with Marwell nearby), Oxford (Cotswold Wildlife Park, ditto), Birmingham ( which has a nice small collection, with a reasonable medium sized zoo -Dudley-and a safari park with quite a few unusual species-West Midland-within striking distance) and above all Liverpool (Chester can only be half an hour's drive from the Merseyside border).
But that leaves Cardiff, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and Glasgow as cities with populations well over six figures (in Glasgow's case pushing towards seven) with not much more than pets' corners and the odd aviary.
Maybe one reason why we have such a vociferous anti-zoo lobby in the UK is that we have a large urban population, many of whom are nowhere very close to a substantial zoo.
jbnbsn99
Well-Known Member
But isn't Glasgow only 46 miles away from Edinburgh? Doesn't seem that far to me at all.
IanRRobinson
Well-Known Member
Somewhere on this forum must be a Scot who'll save me the trouble of how Glaswegians would feel at being regarded as a suburban outstation of Edinburgh...
Just did a quick search. They have a population of more than 200,000 and they are 3 1/2 hours away from Gladys Porter Zoo. So yes, I think that would be a good location.
Nobody visits Laredo at all? Is this just because of the violence along the border right now or is it because there really is nothing there at all? El Paso and Browsnville have zoos and they are border towns. I'm not questioning your judgement (especially since you live in Texas and I don't), I'm just asking for clarification.