WERRIBEE ZOO GETS MAKEOVER
WERRIBEE Zoo will undergo a mega-expansion to accommodate more than a million visitors and make it one of the world’s best after a $1 million funding boost was secured recently.
The expansion is part of a ‘future-proofing’ plan to give both animals and visitors the best experience, boost tourism and raise conservation efforts.
Werribee Open Range Zoo has just received an extra $1.6 million in last-minute funding from the State Government.
It follows $1 million secured last year from the Government for the expansions, which are estimated to cost $86 million over eight years.
Werribee Open Range Zoo director Glen Holland said the proposal had given the zoo an “amazing buzz.”
“I’m really excited about this space,” he said.
“(We’re planning) a lot of how do visitors get the best possible views, obviously without touching, and how do we showcase the amount of work we put into the care and compassion?
“It’s great for visitors, it’s great from a commercial product point of view, for revenue and it’s great for the animals.”
The open-plan site stretches over 250ha, half of which are currently being used.
But under new plans, the site would increase by 40-50ha during six main phases.
The phases include: A NEW and larger space for southern white rhinos and an expanded bison herd. A BIGGER area for hippos, meerkats and a purpose-built Cheetah Lawn for music concerts and events (with capacity to hold up to 5000 people). A DEDICATED area for cheetahs and wild dogs to roam separately, stimulating territorial behaviour. INTRODUCTION of a second lion pride and the zoo’s first clan of hyenas. A GONDOLA Sky Safari — a 20-minute round trip with the capacity to move 1000 people every hour, stretching across the zoo to a new 20ha elephant enclosure. REHOMING the entire elephant herd from Melbourne Zoo. Six elephants will be shifted to Werribee to allow for expansion and breeding with capacity for up to 15 elephants in the future.
Visions of a red-sand Kalahari Desert, breakfast with the meerkat colony, after-hours exploring the savanna, carpark expansions and new eateries are also included in the plans.
The zoo’s 200 or so staff would also double.
Mr Holland said the redevelopment could take eight or more years to fully complete, and would need the support of the community, local business, philanthropists and Zoos Victoria.
Once completed, Werribee zoo would be “one of the most exciting zoos in the world”, Mr Holland said.
With an expanding population across Melbourne’s west, the plans will allow for greater numbers to visit the zoo while increasing tourism across the board.
It will also help fund conservation efforts in Australia and around the world.
The Sunset Safari, trialled last year, focused on engaging the local African community, while the Wild Nights experience gave visitors a taste of the zoo after dark.
Both broke daily visitor records.
In the past year alone, the number of visitors in one day jumped from an average of 5000 zoo-goers, to 7500 and then a record 10,500.