BREEDER ENVISIONS 1,000-ACRE SAFARI PARK
But hurdles likely for plan to put $500 million site in San Antonio
SAN ANTONIO — Exotic-animal breeder Brian Gilroy wants to build a $500 million safari park on San Antonio’s South Side.
Gilroy, CEO and co-founder of WildLife Partners, which breeds and sells nonnative livestock at ranches in Central and South Texas, said his “ultimate ambition” is to build a 1,000acre safari park on land just north of Texas A&M UniversitySan Antonio.
“The world is crying for a new zoo,” Gilroy said. “People want to see zoos in a different way, and they want to see wideopen spaces, less walls, less fences.
“No one is stepping up in revolutionizing the zoo industry,” he added. “I intend to be the person to do it.”
Gilroy envisions a tram, part air-conditioned and part openair, moving park visitors along a 6-mile route to view a collection of wild animals — from primates to Sichuan takin (a goat-antelope) to various kinds of duiker, closely related to antelopes.
“I’m not a fan of having big cats. It’s just not my thing,” he said, before reconsidering. “But big cats sell tickets.”
To be sure, Gilroy’s plan is in the preliminary stages, and he likely faces hurdles executing it.
The proposed project comes as Gilroy closes in on the acquisition of 4,000 acres for San Antonio-based WildLife Partners’ fourth ranch — this one in Carrizo Springs. The company breeds and sells about 50 species of exotic animals, including dama gazelles, Grévy’s ze
bra and scimitar oryx.
It also owns ranches in Goliad, near Pearsall and in Mountain Home in the Hill Country.
Before starting WildLife Partners, Gilroy founded an oil and gas exploration company. He placed $100 million of investment capital in various exploration projects in the U.S., WildLife Partners’ website says.
Citing his background in putting deals together and his knowledge of the “wildlife business,” Gilroy said he wasn’t concerned about revealing his plan for the safari park before it’s solidified.
“It takes a certain skill set to do what I do,” he said.
Gilroy has his eye on land owned by Verano Land Group. He’d like to acquire the property by the end of this year, then work on a business plan before going to the city for approvals. He intends to look to Wall Street to finance the land purchase and park construction.
Joe DeSimone, a Verano managing member, recalled speaking with Gilroy, possibly about a year ago.
“It’s something we’d love to engage in — a conversation — but probably not to the newspaper,” DeSimone said of the safari plan.
Getting development started on the Verano land has been a slog. Verano assembled about 2,500 acres for a reported $65 million in 2006 and then donated 700 acres for the A&M campus. The school opened in 2011.
The land had been approved for 5,700 residential units and 3 million square feet of commercial and industrial space. Until recently, nothing much had happened there. The city even declared Verano in default under a development agreement in 2018 after it failed to stick to a construction timeline.
Verano put its remaining 1,800 acres up for sale. In November, it sold about 600 acres to New Braunfels-based SouthStar Communities for a masterplanned community called VIDA.
SouthStar recently started work on the land. Plans call for building 4,000 residential units and 300,000 square feet of commercial and retail space.
SouthStar’s and Verano’s properties are in a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, which makes up to $219.8 million in property tax revenue available to the developer for public improvements.
The city created the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone in 2007 to kick-start development around the university.
SouthStar spokeswoman Gretchen Howell wouldn’t address whether the company would welcome a safari park near VIDA.
“It would be unreasonable for us to comment on something that we have so little information on right now,” Howell said.
Kathryn Funk-Baxter, the university’s vice president of business affairs, couldn’t be reached for comment. The college has said it wants housing and shops built on the Verano land to help attract more students.
Gilroy said he had his first planning meeting with consultants Monday. He acknowledged he has a lot on his plate with the expansion of WildLife Partners’ ranch operations.
“I am not an operator — I’m a dreamer,” he said. “So I’m really good at putting these things together and getting other people to go execute. I am not qualified to operate a safari park of that magnitude. My only option is to hire the people to bring them in to do it.”