“We’ll have cost projections at some point, David,” Tedesco said. Tedesco didn’t give any figures, saying planning was in early stages and “conceptual.” Tedesco said the plan included a combination of public-private partnerships for restaurants and other amenities at the site along with help from donations and such groups as the Friends of the Bergen County Zoo.įreeholder David Ganz asked about the cost of the expansion. As the Dublin Zoo increased visitors and revenue it worked in new projects each year. This is a similar model to what was done with the zoo in Dublin, Campos told officials. The development of each phase will be demand- and revenue-driven, County Executive James Tedesco said. That’s where the county could add 11 acres, nearly doubling the zoo’s size to 23 total acres. The next and likely most visible change would come by expanding the zoo on its edges, where there is existing open space, Campos said. The aim of the project is to more than double that number to 500,000 by the end of the projected 15-year expansion, Koth said.
The plan is divided into multiple phases, the first of which would renovate and upgrade the existing center that holds the prairie dog and red wolf exhibits, Koth said.Ībout 230,000 people visit the zoo each year. Though animal exhibits and other portions were added to the zoo through the decades, including an educational center in 2004, there haven’t been many major upgrades to the 13-acre site since 2006. Parks Department Director James Koth laid out the current state of the zoo, which opened in 1960. The company has done work for more than a decade with zoos in Detroit, Miami and Dublin.
HACKENSACK – A long-term county plan would transform the Bergen County Zoo over the next 15 years, nearly doubling its size, adding 12 new species of animals, overhauling habitats, adding multiple centers and event spaces in an effort to double its number of annual visitors.įreeholders heard broad strokes of the plan Wednesday from Mario Campos, principal with Jones & Jones, a Seattle-based architectural firm that is developing the master plan for the park.