This week will be an important one for the future of the Lehigh Valley Zoo. Located in the northern tier of Lehigh County, within the spectacularly beautiful Trexler Game Preserve, this beleaguered venture may be coming to the end.The County Commissioners have asked the Lehigh Valley Zoological Society, the non-profit organization that runs the zoo, to submit a revised operating plan by this Wednesday, the 14th. A previous plan called for the zoo to become self-sustaining by the year 2009, but that goal proved to be unobtainable.
An op-ed in Sunday's Morning Call, quoted Society chairman, Frederick Keller, as saying, that the zoo allows people to "see animals in their natural habitat". I beg to differ...very few of the animals on exhibit at the Lehigh Valley Zoo are native to the Lehigh Valley. And the exhibits that have been created for them are poor imitations of their real natural habitat, much of which is in Africa.
I admit that I've never been a fan of the zoo. I suppose my judgement is colored by my love for the game preserve as a place of natrual peace and beauty. One of my favorite memories of my parents is of them sitting in lawn chairs down by the creek after a family picnic. I was encouraged a few years ago when there was talk of the Wildland's Conservancy becoming involved in creating hiking trails and nature walks. I don't know if anything came of that plan, but it should have.
Although attendance at the zoo improved over the past year, and educational programs were made available to school children, the reality is that we are simply not a large enough market to sustain a collection of exotic animals. Tough times call for tough choices, and when human services are being cut and people are in need, one of those choices may have to be to close the zoo.
If that happens, let's hope that everyone involved will do whatever is necessary to safely and humanely transfer the animals to accreditied facilities; not "Uncle Joe's Traveling Circus" or Jungle Jim's Roadside Animal Farm", but to professional zoological institutions where they will be cared for and appreciated.
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19 comments:
Pam,
I agree that it is time to quit asking citizens to prop up failing ventures.
The Zoo is a great place, but there happens to be a very nice one in Philadelphia, and the National zoo in D.C is free.
It would be great if every child could visit the zoo on a whim and see the animals of the planet, but it isn't practical.
I was lucky to grow up outside Columbus ohio, which has an incredible zoo, but that zoo was funded by a vote on a tax referendum that was passed by the population of Franklin County.
I don't think the people of Lehigh County would be willing to entertain such a ballot issue.
I feel the same about the Velodrome. If that were put on the ballot, I bet it would get crushed.
We need to concentrate on general services, and taking care of basic needs. Unfortunately, the zoo is an extravagance, and will probably have to be cut.
it's a sad decision to have to make. I think anybody who has been there has fond memories.
As far as the trails, I know i volunteered on two different saturdays to do some trail restoration and creation work. My understanding is that the trails are being created/opened little by little. Still, this is independant of the zoo.
If the zoo is closed there will be a problem with finding humane homes for the animals: many U.S. zoos have more animals than they can handle already and often a surplus animal is not given a good home.
Wikipedia's Zoo entry says:
"The San Jose Mercury News conducted a two-year study that suggested of the 19,361 mammals who left accredited zoos in the United States between 1992 and 1998, 7,420 (38 percent) went to dealers, auctions, hunting ranches, unaccredited zoos and individuals, and game farms. Some zoos have advertised surplus animals in the Animal Finders' Guide, a newsletter in which the owners of hunting ranches post notices of sales and auctions."
In these hard economic times -- for zoos, too -- getting good ones to take the Lehigh County animals may be tough.
Chris,
While doing some research for this post, I found a mention of a recent Morning Call poll that supposedly showed that a majority of the people responding were actually in favor of the zoo. I didn't have time to go digging for the poll itself but I have no reason to believe the info is not accurate.
However, I think if you asked, "Are you willing to have your taxes raised to support the zoo?", the answer would be "no".
If the zoo could support itself either by revenue or grants, this would not be an issue, but to ask the taxpayer to carry this burden in these times is impractical and unfair to the services that are bing cut.
Geoff,
I'm glad to hear that there is work being done on the trails.
I've never understood why the Game Preserve is not turned into a hiking and nature study destination. It is one of the most beautiful spots in the entire Valley.
There does seem to be some confusion in people's minds between the funding of the zoo and the game preserve...they are independent of each other.
Don,
Thank you for passing along this information: It is very discouraging indeed.
What a horrible choice we're faced with.
pam, i agree....this is a classic case of overreaching. years ago, the "game preserve" was a quaint, but idyllic nicety.
in fact, at one time if you referred to it as a "zoo" the county officials would get all exercised about it.
can't they just downsize back to a few pastoral acres populated with a herd of mangy buffalo?
The post by donmiles touched on one of the more difficult issues to sort out as part of any conversation about closing the Zoo. Specifically, any discussion to close the Zoo has to address finding proper placement for the animals and has to include the cost of doing that and the cost of operating the zoo until that task is completed. "Back of the envelope" type calculations show that the cost of this process could range up to $600,000. And once the Zoo is closed, the County still has the ongoing responsibility (and cost) of caring for the elk and bison. The animals are not part of the Zoo but their care (along with a cost of app. $80,000 per year) is currently picked up by the Zoo as part of the lease agreement.
At this point it looks like the discussion of these (and other issues) will be at our meeting on the 28th rather than this coming Wednesday.
Dean
"the reality is that we are simply not a large enough market to sustain a collection of exotic animals."
Pam, with over half a million people in the Lehigh Valley, I certainly do think we have a market to sustain the zoo.
IMHO, the Zoo needs someone to take a better stronghold of raising public awareness about the zoo through planning, organizing & fund raising.
Anon 12:51,
I agree in principle; unfortunately the reality is that we are now responsible for dozens of living creatures and have millions of dollars invested in exhibits and infrastructure.
It's very difficult to extricate yourself from that kind of obligation.
Dean,
Thanks so much for posting this information and update:
I don't envy you and the other commissioners having to sort this out.
$600,000 is a hefty one-time cost, but still less than the $400,000 per year required to maintain the zoo for "who knows how long".
I would think there is also the issue of what to do with the exhibits and the infrastructure of the zoo. If simply abandoned, they will become a liability and an eyesore.
The information that the buffalo/bison herd would now become a county expense is also something to consider, although wasn't that always the case before the zoo?
Biffy...nice to hear from you.
Although I've not been a zoo fan, I have always thought that, since it was there, it needed much better marketing and promotion.
On the times that I have mentioned it in conversation most people had either never heard of it or had no concept of what it really offered.
If the commissioners decide to keep it, there should be money committed to an aggressive, professional marketing campaign.
If it's going to stay, we should do everything we can to make it self-supporting.
wow 600k to close the place down! 80k/year to take care of animals not part of the zoo itself.
I don't want to belittle the decision itself, but if the county doesn't demand a business plan (which includes things like operations, marketing, fundraising and program development) that is verified for feasibility from the zoo operators, then taxpayers have a right to be miffed. Was this done when the original deal was made 5 years ago.
Eat more BisonBurgers....oh come on, you were all thinking it!!!
Eat more BisonBurgers....oh come on, you were all thinking it!!!
Geoff,
There is a twenty page strategic plan; I have copy of it on my desk, but the Zoological Society was unable to meet their predictions.
If the zoo stays, perhaps there should be an oversight committee of concerned business people and managers put in place.
OMG...Did I just recommend more bureaucracy? Desperate times affect people in strange ways :-)
Anon 9:45,
Actually I wasn't thinking of it...
But it's very funny anyway.
"There is a twenty page strategic plan; I have copy of it on my desk, but the Zoological Society was unable to meet their predictions."
So I ask how realistic the projects really were. Were they based on certain marketing activities being performed that never were? I've seen many strategic plans. Some are realistic. Others are not. None should be taken at face value. There should be some investigation into the assumptions made in the plans.
As far as the oversight committee, I agree it needs to be part of this. We are talking about taxpayer dollars. Ensuring accountability and providing oversight is something that all levels of gov't could learn to do. Call it beauracracy, oversight or bean county: if we are spending 400k on a bailout (effectively what this is), we should be watching closely.
Fantastic Article. I'm glad to see someone had the political guts to speak of realities in life. I like animals very, very much. I really do. I have two cats at home.
But...we just plain can't afford to raise taxes to support everything under the sun all day long. We just can't. Things will have to be able to stand on their own two feet in the coming age and be a little more self-sufficient.
I'm glad I'm not a budget maker and having to decide what stays and goes. Somebody is going to have to though...
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