Only on ABC-7: Quality of life improvements coming to El Paso Zoo
The city of El Paso is more than halfway finished with a list of projects paid for by the $473.2 million 2012 Quality of Life bond.
A sizable chunk of the money, $50 million, is being spent on improvements at the El Paso Zoo.
ABC-7 got a first glimpse at what’s set to be unveiled in the coming months in the African and American sections of the zoo.
“We are ushering in this year with two new projects,” project manager Yvette Hernandez told ABC-7 during a tour of the zoo.
Hernandez referred to the red river hogs, which will be introduced to zoo visitors the weekend before spring break.
“We have three cute little males that will be running around and entertaining the children as they see a new addition of an animal species to the El Paso Zoo,” Hernandez said.
Another project is the renovated reptile house.
“There is quite an amazing feature that we’ve added to the building,” Hernandez said. Zoo officials remain tight-lipped, and allowed ABC-7 to only record video of one detail: a turtle foot made of smoothed stone and concrete. Hernandez detailed other changes to the existing reptile house.
“With our glorious sun, it doesn’t really allow (visitors) to see into exhibits sometimes. So we built anti-glare walls,” she said. “It’s a tunnel effect. Kids can walk in and better see the exhibits.”
Construction is also underway on a 300-seat wildlife theater. Zoo officials told ABC-7 that it will house shows that will rival those at zoos and amusement parks across the nation.
“It will be entertaining and interactive,” Hernandez said. “The kids will be able to see birds flying overhead, and we’re also trying to have small mammals integrated in the show.”
Another addition under construction is an event space near the zebra exhibit.
Projects further down the line include a $10 million Chihuahuan Desert exhibit and the introduction of penguins to the zoo.
“We’re looking (at the year) 2022, around there. It’s slated for design early in 2020,” Hernandez said.
The wildlife theater, event tent and reptile house are all expected to open later this year.
