Lake Superior Zoo Proposed Concepts Now Available For Public Review

Three proposed concepts for the Lake Superior Zoo who presented Tuesday night and now the public can review each plan and submit comments. 

Back in November, the City of Duluth and the Lake Superior Zoological Society announced a consensus concept for the future of the Lake Superior Zoo and Fairmount Park that includes a renewed zoo and converts a portion of the existing zoo to become a top-quality free public park.

The three draft concept plans presented during the public meeting are listed below and for comparison, here's what the zoo currently looks like.

Plan 1

Fairmount Park Concept : The trails behind the zoo will be opened up with accessible nature areas, native gardens, a nature play area, picnic/play/event space, picnic pavilions and even a sledding will for winter. Across the street connecting to the Munger Trail and Western Waterfront Trail there will be a pavilion, boardwalk and overlook with open water for canoeing, kayaking and are for Zoo programming.

Zoo Site Plan: This plan would add a Forest Discovery Zone near Australia & Oceania which would house otter, fox, marten, wolverine, porcupine, raven, and wolves. There would also be some play areas and a picnic area with possible future expansion possibility. In the middle there will be a Cool Cats area where bobcat, lynx, cougar, amur tiger, amur leopard, eurasian lynx, and pallas's cat would all call home. There would be an indoor play area nearby and Grizzly Country would be located behind the Cool Cats. Lastly is the Critters Connection exhibit where the petting zoo would be located along with an amphitheater, an more play areas.

Plan 2

Fairmount Park: Similar to the first concept, however there will be a train path added, and the nature play would be closer to to the picnic/play/event space with an added plaza.

Zoo Site: There will still be a Forest Discovery Zone next to Austrailia and Oceania, it will just be arranged differently. bobcat and lynx will stay put but instead be next to a Local Treasures exhibit. The brown bear will stay put as well and there be a North Asia exhibit next to Kindred Connections instead of Critter Connections. There will also be an outdoor play next to the indoor play area.

Plan 3

Fairmount Park:  Essentially it would be both concepts plans 1 and 2 together with a different train path.

Zoo Site: Again plan 3 is basically combined plans of 1 and 2.

You have until January 27, 2016 to leave your feedback on the three concept plans and you take that survey here.