Struggling zoos in the USA

[SwampDonkey]

After a recent visit to the Jackson Zoo (Jackson MS) I came upon a thought, what zoos in the USA are struggling financially, collections, maintenance, etc.? Jackson is struggling in all categories. I will do a full trip review today, but in short, Jackson struggles with having enough finances to adequately hire and pay staff, feed animals, acquire new animals, and keep up with general maintenance. They have scaled back to being closed on Mondays and Wednesdays and have many vacant habitats. The habitats that are still occupied are in desperate need of repairs, as are the visitor walkways, concessions, etc.

I understand the Mill Mountain struggles financially, but not as bad as Jackson. But what other public "real zoos" are struggling in similar manners? I am not talking about roadside zoos, but real zoos, perhaps city owned (like Jackson), but also perhaps managed by a zoological society.

 

[PossumRoach]

I recall hearing that the Lousiana Purchase Gardens was in a pickle.

 

[birdsandbats]

Minnesota has been well-documented as struggling financially, but things have apparently been improving.

Henry Vilas is really struggling with its management.

 

[PSO]

Franklin Park Zoo has also had financial difficulties for decades

 

[SusScrofa]

Wasn't Baton Rouge Zoo on the brink of closure? They lost accreditation and things haven't been good for a while though from what I've read they're hopeful for the future.

 

[wild boar]

Hasn't the Brookfield Zoo had financial challenges lately?

I got the impression that the Capron Park Zoo isn't doing too well.

 

[TinoPup]

Nearly all of them, to varying degrees. Some just hide it better. Little Rock and Philly are two that have been documented pretty well on here.

 

[protege]

How is the Honolulu zoo doing these days?

 

[Persephone]

Hasn't the Brookfield Zoo had financial challenges lately?

I got the impression that the Capron Park Zoo isn't doing too well.

Brookfield is at least starting to implement a new master plan, showing that they have some confidence in their fundraising abilities.

How is the Honolulu zoo doing these days?

Good enough to regain AZA accreditation after initially losing it explicitly on the basis of funding problems.

 

[Animallover360]

Franklin Park Zoo has also had financial difficulties for decades

They have but they’ve welcomed a lot of new, interesting species lately and built a very nice outdoor space for their gorillas. They also have the Children’s Zoo they rebuilt not to far back. I think they’ve improved a lot the past 10 years.

 

[PSO]

It hasn't changed much since I consistently visited in the mid to late 90s, the outdoor Gorilla is nice but nothing special and I preferred the old children zoos compared to the new

 

[15399]

I got the impression that the Capron Park Zoo isn't doing too well.

Indeed they aren't. There was a recent newspaper article about the zoo's finances:
Capron Park Zoo in Attleboro facing 'fiscal problem'

 

[Animallover360]

It hasn't changed much since I consistently visited in the mid to late 90s, the outdoor Gorilla is nice but nothing special and I preferred the old children zoos compared to the new

Technically they didn’t have to completely demolish it as they could’ve just fixed a few things to make it up to date but it is what it is at this point

 

[ZooElephantMan]

Indeed they aren't. There was a recent newspaper article about the zoo's finances:
Capron Park Zoo in Attleboro facing 'fiscal problem'

Wow, that article is alarming. Do you have any idea how we can expect this situation to resolve?

 

[ZooElephantMan]

It hasn't changed much since I consistently visited in the mid to late 90s, the outdoor Gorilla is nice but nothing special and I preferred the old children zoos compared to the new

Even if the new additions to FPZ are not perfect, they are still signs that the zoo is doing better financially, as otherwise they would not be able to make these multimillion dollar investments in the first place. Annual visitation numbers at Franklin Park and Stone have also continued to rise, which is further evidence of the zoos’ increasing support.

 

[PSO]

@ZooElephantsMan that's not completely accurate. I specifically didn't mention Stone because Stone brings in enough money to not only support itself but also partially supports FPZ as well. The main problem with FPZ is the location which is awful for a zoo in a major city which limits its attendance, not to mention parking is an absolute joke (don't ever visit if an event is taking place at the neighboring Brookline Golf course). Stone is easily accessible from I-93, safe neighborhood, has easy parking (with overflow just across the street) and has a enough popular species to keep steady attendance numbers. More than once its been suggested combining both facilities at a new location but would be a major undertaking (not to mention land is astronomically expensive in that neck of the woods)

 

[Youssarian]

Wasn't Baton Rouge Zoo on the brink of closure? They lost accreditation and things haven't been good for a while though from what I've read they're hopeful for the future.

Baton Rouge was in hot water for a second but I believe they're doing alright for now. They just opened a brand new pygmy hippo/colobus exhibit and have been steadily working on a new giraffe complex (not sure when it's supposed to open). Last time I was there (maybe like 1-2 years ago, I can't remember exactly) there was some work being done near the otter exhibit which is supposed to transform into a bigger Louisiana-themed section, the South American large mammals (jaguar and spectacled bear) were off exhibit due to renovations for their den areas, and don't quote me but I believe work is starting to be done within their former administrative area which is supposed to become the new entrance.

So it seems that things are trucking along but I'm not privy to their finances or day-to-day operations so who knows for sure? At least investments are being made to improve the zoo for animals and visitors.