Council endorses zoo's 20-year plan

By Bob Young
Seattle Times staff reporter

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The Seattle City Council has approved a new 20-year plan for the Woodland Park Zoo that paves the way for a new garage, office building, events center and carousel ride, as well as a "winter zoo" and improved animal exhibits.

Although the plan is controversial with some neighbors and open-space and transit advocates, the council voted unanimously for it. Council members said the plan is overdue and will help usher in a new era of financial stability for the zoo, as well as make it more welcoming to patrons.

"We are a growing world-class city, and we need a zoo that matches," said Councilman David Della. "We're still developing on the same footprint as the old zoo, and I think the zoo is changing for the better,"

Phinney Ridge activist Irene Wall raised questions and objections about the need for the new buildings, the way they might change the character of Woodland Park and their impact on traffic and parking in the neighborhood.

In a recent letter to council members, Wall said "many citizens do not think that a zoo should include some of the proposed features," such as a garage, office building and events center.

The zoo president, Deborah Jensen, said she appreciated neighbors' concerns but maintained the plan would not change the character of the zoo. The new facilities would add just 1.5 percent of developed space to the zoo's 92 acres, she stressed.

Councilman Nick Licata added several neighborhood safeguards to the plan, including a complaint procedure and a way for neighbors to know of the events the zoo plans for a particular year.

The zoo's long-range plan has been under various neighborhood, environmental and financial reviews since 2001. This marks the first significant update to the zoo's long-term vision since 1976. The plan addresses several key issues, such as how to make the zoo more financially viable and how to accommodate 250,000 more visitors — roughly a 20 percent increase in annual attendance — by the year 2020.

In December 2001, the council handed over management of the zoo to a private nonprofit organization, the Woodland Park Zoological Society. But the city continues to contribute about $5 million a year to the zoo, retains ownership of the zoo property and has the authority to review and modify the zoo's 20-year plan.
 
The new plan would remodel about a dozen animal exhibits, making them more naturalistic, Jensen said. It also envisions more indoor exhibits and gathering places in an effort to provide more winter activities for visitors.

As Jensen noted, exhibit changes didn't provoke debate, because "we all agree on the animal places." The most controversial proposals in the plan include:

• A 700-stall, three-story parking garage on the west side of the zoo property, aimed at making visits more convenient while reducing parking on neighborhood streets. Under a complicated formula, the city would pay $6.7 million of the cost if the garage is used as much as anticipated, according to a Department of Finance analysis. City payments would start in 2007.

• A 9,000-square-foot Events Center, near the zoo's north meadow, to be rented out for community gatherings, workshops, weddings and parties. The center is expected to host up to 500 events a year, with the average event attended by 120 people.

• A donated antique carousel amusement ride, housed in a 5,600-square-foot building near the north meadow that would offer space that could be rented for birthday parties. The zoo society expects the Events Center and carousel to bring in about $400,000 to $500,000 a year.

• A 15,400-square-foot two-story office building that would bring together under one roof employees now scattered around the zoo grounds in 10 trailers. Most employees, including Jensen, now work in trailers.

Jensen said she's confident the 34-foot-tall garage and two-story office building would not be eyesores or ruin any park views. As evidence, she points to the way the zoo has effectively screened many of its existing structures with trees and landscaping.

A council staff analyst also noted that the zoo has much less parking than comparably sized zoos.

The 1918 carousel, with 48 wooden horses, is a gift worth an estimated $1 million that she predicted would become a "favorite attraction" for younger children.

There is no firm timeline or budget for the proposed changes, Jensen said. Now that the council has approved the plan, the zoo can start designing structures and raising money. Except for the garage, the new features would be funded largely by private donations, Jensen said.

The zoo has spent five years getting public feedback and environmental reviews of its long-range plan and spent $1 million of private donations in the process, Jensen said.

"We're delighted our 20-year course for the future is plotted," she said.

Bob Young: 206-464-2174 or byoung@seattletimes.com