Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium is getting ready to roll out its plan for a new complex that will feature a modern aquarium, bigger facilities for marine mammals and family-oriented activities such as a wave tunnel and diving with the fish.
An architectural firm has sketched preliminary designs after gathering suggestions from the public and staff biologists at the zoo. The ideas will be presented to residents at two meetings this week.
Zoo officials said a new aquarium is the top priority because the North Pacific Aquarium, which opened in 1963, is deteriorating and showing signs of corrosion from saltwater. Damages could force the zoo to vacate the building in five to six years.
The new aquarium would span 35,000 to 40,000 square feet and cost about $30 million to $40 million. It would feature species from the Pacific Rim, basically all continents that touche the Pacific Ocean.
“This is not a Taj Mahal aquarium,” deputy director John Houck cautioned. “It’s modest and for the square footage, size and price can be very, very exciting. But it is entirely up to our community to decide whether that’s something it wants.”
The new aquarium and other improvements zoo officials envision likely would happen over the next 25 years and at least one bond issue would be needed to pay for them, said director of zoological and environmental education Gary Geddes.
Zoo officials said they don’t yet know how much the entire project will cost and no date for seeking a bond has been set. The Point Defiance Zoological Society likely will help raise money and collect donations.
Plans place the proposed complex across the road from where Rocky Shores currently sits. The space now is occupied by a covered pavilion in a picnic area along Five Mile Drive.
A foot bridge leading over the popular road would connect the new complex to the zoo. A warm-water stream would run alongside the aquarium, and an elevator would lead from the new complex to the shoreline.
The aquarium’s entrance would feature a plexiglass wave tunnel where visitors could stand inside a simulated crashing wave. A large viewing window would offer up-close views of sea turtles and rays. Three classrooms and expansive event space would be added to enhance programs such s summer camps and Zoo Snooze.
Visitors also could pay an extra fee to snorkel or “snuba dive” (a cross between snorkeling and scuba diving) with underwater critters in a warm-water pool.
“It’s a chance to have those encounters close and personal, an opportunity to learn more firsthand,” curator of education John Garner said. “It’s all geared toward families and hands-on activities.”
Next to the Pacific Rim Aquarium would be a bolstered marine mammal area to house the walruses, sea lions and seals that live in the Rocky Shores exhibit. Arctic foxes, snowy owls and arctic hares would get bigger digs and the polar bear facilities would be expanded to promote a future breeding program.
Rocky Shores would expand to where the reindeer and muskoxen live, although the reindeer no longer would be on exhibit.
Zoo officials also would like to add a public plaza and a Russian Far East exhibit to display new animals such as Siberian musk deer, white-naped cranes and gorals.
Once construction finished on the Pacific Rim aquarium and the species were moved, the current aquarium would be empty.
Though it’s the oldest building at the zoo, a structural assessment found it could be used for displays that do not involve saltwater. This is expected to lengthen its lifespan and significantly reduce maintenance costs.
Zoo officials would like to open a South America exhibit at the current aquarium location, which would carry a similar theme as the South Pacific Aquarium where the sharks are kept.
As visitors enter the South America exhibit, they would gaze upon a village in the Andes Mountains with a condor, its wings spanning 10 feet, flying overhead. The sights and sounds of a rain forest would be projected in the area, which would be filled with jaguars, monkeys, bats, lizards and insects.
Eight exhibits are planned outdoors and 35 are planned indoors.
Geddes said it’s important to note that the zoo will repurpose most of the infrastructure rather than abandon it and start anew.
The South America exhibit would take the place of the North Pacific Aquarium. The new aquarium would use many of the old pumps and filtration systems, and the existing pools at Rocky Shores would be valuable real estate in the new complex.
“Our overriding goal from the very beginning has been to reuse and repurpose wherever possible,” Geddes said.
The proposed projects are all part of the zoo’s long-term master plan, which is setting priorities for the next two decades. The plan, which is being developed in conjunction with Point Defiance Park’s master plan, is expected to be complete this spring.
Zoo officials stressed that the community will help dictate how the zoo will develop and expand, and help decide which projects should move forward first.
“It’s a road map for the future,” Geddes said.
Stacia Glenn: 253-597-8653
stacia.glenn@thenewstribune.com
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