Minnesota Zoo seeks $6 million to renovate century‑old hospital wing after governor recommends $4 million
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Summary
The Minnesota Zoo told the Capital Investment Committee it needs $6 million in asset‑preservation bonding to renovate its oldest hospital building and attach a new medical wing; the zoo said a $78 million backlog and safety risks to staff and animals make the work urgent.
The Minnesota Zoo asked the state Capital Investment Committee on March 5 for $6,000,000 in asset‑preservation bonding to renovate its original animal hospital and support a new attached wing for medical suites.
Director John Frawley said the 50‑year‑old zoo faces a large deferred‑maintenance backlog and safety risks. "A third of the 125 structures are in poor or crisis condition," Frawley told the committee, and the zoo has "over $78,000,000 of backlog that continues to grow." He said the governor recommended $4,000,000 to address life‑support systems but the additional $6,000,000 is needed to restore staff spaces and envelope systems so a smaller, attached hospital wing can operate as intended.
Dr. Annie Rivas, the zoo’s head veterinarian, said the proposed new wing would house essential medical functions while renovations to the older building would provide staff space, storage and code‑compliance upgrades. "The $6,000,000 in asset preservation is urgently needed to fund the renovation of [the building’s] envelope systems work and workspaces to remove asbestos, meet code requirements, [and] improve overall safety," Rivas said, describing recent workplace injuries and close calls in aging facilities.
Committee members asked for clarification about what the zoo meant by "incidents" and how aging infrastructure contributes to worker and animal risk. In response, Frawley detailed a recent close call in which a tiger could reach an extra six inches through a wall because a fence had pulled away, and said investigators repaired and inspected the area. He also cited lighting, lifts and animal handling equipment as infrastructure shortfalls.
The zoo described the programmatic importance of the hospital work for animal care and breeding and noted that roughly one‑third of its funding comes from the state while the remainder is self‑generated; the zoo reported annual visitation of about 1.4–1.5 million and called itself a major education and conservation resource.
The committee did not take a vote on the bonding request during the hearing; members thanked the presenters and moved on to other agency presentations.