Moving day is fast approaching for three polar bears at the Metro Toronto Zoo as construction to upgrade their habitat goes into full swing this fall.
TORONTO
Moving day is fast approaching for three polar bears at the Metro Toronto Zoo as construction to upgrade their habitat goes into full swing this fall.
The zoo is starting its multiphase North Zoo Site Redevelopment with renovation plans for the Tundra Biome (Phase I).
The expansion will see renovation of the existing polar bear exhibit and the addition of other sub-Arctic exhibits to the site.
At completion, the polar bear exhibit will be three times larger than the current exhibit.
Robin Hale, chief operating officer for the Toronto Zoo, says the renovation was desperately needed for improving both animal comfort and visitor experience.
“The Tundra is a significant project for us because it allows us to renovate an older more tired area and brings it up to date with modern animal care standards and exhibitory standards,” Hale said.
The underwater polar bear viewing will also be renovated, and plans include the addition of an ice cave.
Construction plans follow a North Site Redevelopment Feasibility Study completed in 2003 which examined the redevelopment needs of the northern portion of the Toronto Zoo site.
The project will address issues raised by the public in relation to the Canadian Domain exhibits.
“We have been renovating and rebuilding the entire north half of the zoo site over a period of six years,” Hale explained.
The estimated cost of the overall project is $30 million, with construction scheduled to start on three other exhibits (The Eurasia exhibit, The Canadian Wilderness exhibit, and The Tropical Americas) once phase one gets underway.
Although the zoo site will be more concentrated to allow people to walk through the middle of the experience, it will not be at the cost of shrinking the animal enclosures.
“We have hired a Philadelphia firm that specializes in zoo designs, Coe Lee Robinson, to undertake the primary design,” Hale added.
Leona Mitchell, project manager for the Toronto Zoo, says the project is on scheduled.
“We are in the midst of prequalification for our general contractors,” she noted.
Mitchell added she does not foresee many problems arising that could potentially disrupt the project.
“The work starts in the winter which is always a challenge, but we hope with the plans in place, the project will move ahead according to schedule,” she said. “Once construction begins on Phase I, plans are to move onto the design of the next phase, so there will be an overlap between projects, which helps to maintain the schedule.”
Once construction begins, alternative housing will have to be arranged for the animals at other zoos.
“There’s a different plan for every specie, so coordination and a phased approach is necessary,” added Hale.
The zoo also plans to acquire new animals such as arctic foxes and wolverines as the areas are developed.
The project will be built around the Vista Concept, a “view hierarchy” that places smaller animal exhibits closer to the public, then layering the larger exhibits one behind the other. This way, as the viewer walks away, an array of animals will be visible.
Plans are to place wolverines, owls, and arctic foxes up-close with the polar bears at the intermediate level, then furthest would be caribou and reindeers, which are usually in larger herds making for easy viewing from further away.
Key features for the project will include construction elements, such as buildings, and pathways including landscape features.
Improvements will focus on making visitor experience more interactive and educational.
For example, the exhibit will be built around the theme “tundra and the environment” and will highlight the impact the tundra has on the lives of Canadians.
“There is a lot going on in the Arctic these days with global warming and there is the potential for great damage to the environment, because it is a very fragile biome, and we want to let people know about that,” Hale explained.
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