I'd actually be really interested to know how many zoo visitors in this zoo-packed area of Europe are going to multiple different zoos in year, or whether they mostly stick to the nearest. I did notice there is a joint 'membership' arrangement in the Ruhr now, suggesting a fair number do visit more than one.
A number that depends on distribution of wealth. A very high Gini equals a small number of exceptionally wealthy people, but the majority of the population is comparably very poor. This means that the middle class is fairly small. You want a big middle class if you're starting a zoo because they're the majority of normal zoo visitors. This is just the basics and it is much more complex with other factors, but roughly...
Spokane, Wa is in desperate need of a zoo. Our zoo known as Walk in the Wild Zoo closed down do to financial troubles in 1995. The zoo was a horrible one and for the animals sake was good to close it down. Time has passed and population is booming and we need family entertainment. As of now we have Cat Tales which is a crappy little zoological park for big cats. It is crammed between busy hwy 2 and railroad tracks. Spokane metropolitan area has around 700,000 residents even more throughout the greater Inland Northwest. The city of Spokane hosts many events throughout the year and can easily support a large zoo. There are no Zoo's between Seattle, Wa, and Missoula, Mt, Calgary, AB, and Boise, Id. Spokane sits right in the middle. If there is anyone out there that could help bring this dream to reality that would be great. An aquarium would be awesome as well.
Spokane could possibly also support a zoo being so close to Coure D'Alene. That area also has Silverwood Theme Park and people with second homes. Plenty of tourists. Maybe it couldn't support a huge zoo but something. How are the winters there?
In regards to comments made about cities that can support a zoo, I'm curious if there are a lot of people in cities without them who are just not interested. I ask, because even though they are expensive, it seems strange that North Dakota supports three in Minot (pop. About 40k), Bismarck (pop. About 60k) and Fargo (in a metro area of around 230k). Minot and Bismarck, while not having world class facilities, still have AZA accredited facilities and these are isolated cities in the least visited state in the country. Fargo may be in a decent sized metro area, and even though it's on Interstate 94 (like Bismarck) there isn't that much traffic as North Dakota really doesn't attract too many visitors. It does make me wonder why some of the bigger cities, even if they're not in touristy areas, don't have zoos. Just the Almighty Dollar?
Spokane is a much larger city than Cda. Cda is basically a suburb of Spokane. Eastern Washington has roughly 2 million people with North Idaho having a few hundred thousand. Spokane already draws a large tourism crowd through major events yearly. A zoo in this city would thrive. It would bring lots more people in.
Jacob, was that the zoo that was established on the site of the 1974 Spokane World's Fair. Do you have any memories or knowledge of what species the zoo had?
There was never a zoo at that site. That site is Riverfront park. Spokane's zoo was Walk in the Wild Zoo out in what is now the City of Spokane Valley.
The cities that need a zoo include Charlotte (NC), Charleston (SC), Charleston or Morgantown (WV), Flagstaff (AZ) and Cheyenne (WY). Dayton, Ohio could possibly support a zoo, but it is about 78 miles from the Columbus zoo and 49-50 miles from the Cincinnati zoo. Plus, they have the AZA Boonshoft Museum of Discovery. Another possible Ohio location for a zoo could be Mansfield, Ohio, along Interstate 71 between Cleveland and Columbus. It is slightly over an hour to the Columbus zoo from Mansfield, which has about 47,000 people. Richland County as a whole has about 124,000. Plus, it could be a stop for those traveling on the 71. Mansfield has the Ohio Bird Sanctuary, but it is not a "zoo" in the classic sense of the word. Other possible locations include northern New England, Juneau (Alaska), Harrisburg (Pennsylvania), northern Alabama, Shreveport (La.), Lexington (Ky.), and the Jefferson City, Mo. area.
I'm gonna say Cheyenne,Wyoming. While the city itself is rather small,admittedly,a zoo in Cheyenne would be,from personal experience having been in northern Colorado,easier to reach than the Denver Zoo. In addition to this,by all accounts Cheyenne and Northern Colorado are growing quickly. Isn't the best time to establish a zoo during the city's growth periods? (genuine question,actually,this is just speculation on my part)
I used to live in Wyoming so am somewhat familiar with Cheyenne. Cheyenne could probably support a small zoo. It's the northernmost point of the Front Range Urban Corridor so is close to Fort Collins. While it's not in the tourist area of Wyoming, it is fast growing and it is right along Interstate 80, one of the most traveled interstates in the country.
Didn't you mention an idea you had, elefante? It was a cold-weather safari park based in Casper, WY, I believe.... with bison, etc. That could benefit Wyoming.
A little late reply, but North Dakota actually has a fourth AZA accredited zoo in Whapeton, which has a population of around 15,000 and is about an hour south of Fargo. It's called the Chahinkapa Zoo and like Minot, it's not anything to write home about, but it adds to the odd case that such a small state supports such a large amount of zoos.
Two things. One, there is another thread with a virtually identical premise if anyone is interested to read that one as well: Major cities WITHOUT zoos Two, zoos aren't like businesses or services; they don't naturally appear in an area just because the area is capable of supporting one. Each zoo is a unique institution, with its own backstory of how it started and how it has remained intact over the years. This is a lot of why some large cities lack zoos while many smaller cities do have them (or why some cities/urban areas have multiple zoos while others do not). Their prevalence is dictated by contingency rather than some kind of "zoo carrying capacity".
