Tulsa Zoo New Master Plan

Master Plan - Tulsa Zoo

 

Thanks for posting the link. Two of the proposed five new areas are geared specifically to children, and some of the drawings are far more fantasy than reality. The chimpanzee boardwalk is almost amusing to behold! And what kind of name is Sheepy Hollow?

This article mentions the cost of the project ($150 million):

http://www.newson6.com/story/17095939/tulsa-zoo-unvails-what-it-might-look-like-in-20-years

 

Zooplantman beat me to it! Not crazy about everything I see, and was frankly hoping for more, but it is at least movement in the direction of new development. Also as a 20 year master plan I assume it will be subject to refinement and change as public reaction is received, and when actual construction plans have to be drawn. Very glad to read on the zoo's site that the first project will be a new Tiger habitat as part of the Asian "Lost Kingdoms" section. If it looks anything like the rendering, it should be great. The rendering kind of reminded me of the Jaguar exhibit at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle.

I'm guessing they picked "Sheepy Hollow" as a cute little nod to American writer Washington Irving. He actually has a tie to the Tulsa area. He was part of an expedition in the Indian Territory in the early 19th Century. They camped along the Arkansas River in what is now Tulsa County and the group collected wild honey there. That event and the entire journey are chronicled in his book "A Tour of the Prairie." There is now a public park named for him near the campsite, complete with a statue of him, in the Tulsa suburb of Bixby.

 

Here are links to a couple of longer, more informative news articles:

Tulsa Zoo announces new Master Plan | Public Radio Tulsa

Tulsa Zoo plans $150 million facelift, new exhibits | Tulsa World

 

I'm sure many of you already figured this out but those that didn't catch it if you click on the link at the top of the article you can download the entire Master Plan in .pdf form.

 

Some how I expect to see a lot of birds

 

The African Forest looks like it combines elements of two iconic exhibits.One being Tropic World at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago and two would be Congo Gorilla Forest in the Bronx.While Tropic World is considered very outdated by most,Congo continues to set the bar for all zoo exhibits.The artist rendition of the Tulsa Zoos African Forest appears to be a outdoor 21st century version of Tropic World only instead of being surrounded by concrete visitors would be lead through a natural lush steamy jungle similar to the vibe you get while visiting Congo.Tulsa is going to be hard pressed to pull this off without absolutly breaking the bank to do so.

Team Tapir

 

Odds n' sods:

- technically the rhino exhibit will be up first (2014) followed by a badly needed tiger exhibit (2015)
- I find it interesting that the zoo boldy admits that the main pathway meanders and there is a maze-like atmosphere in terms of following the map
- the Tropical American Rainforest (arguably the best part of the zoo) will remain almost the same except for an increase in the size of the jaguar exhibit
- the entire masterplan will of course change over time, and many of the items in it will never see the light of day

 

Thanks Drew. I overlooked that. Nice to be able to read the entire document.

 

The notes in "Appendix A- Master Plan Program" regarding the size of future exhibits are interesting. I'm wondering if some of you who are familiar with the exhibits referenced as comparisons for the proposed exhibits could comment on them. They are:

Mixed Forest Exhibit - "1/2 BGT Hippos". (I believe BGT = Busch Gardens Tampa)

Future Gorilla - "Sim. to Myombe Reserve @ BGT"

Lion, Meerkat - "Sim to BGT"

Tiger - "Sim to Dallas Zoo"

Snow Leopard - "Larger than Minnesota's @ Grizzly Coast"

Komodo Dragon - "Sim to Phoeniz Zoo"

Splash Pad - "Changing Building; Sim to Louisville Zoo"