ASHEBORO N.C. (ACME NEWS) – One year after breaking ground, construction on the Asia expansion at the North Carolina Zoo is on track, but far from finished.
General construction on Asia is 50% complete with no significant delays so far according to Rodgers Builders, the general contractor for the project. The company expects construction of the buildings and infrastructure to be completed by fall of 2024.
Once Asia’s primary construction is complete, the work of turning ten acres of gravel, dirt, and bare concrete buildings into a new continent for guests is where the Zoo’s work will really start, says Diane Villa, Director of Communications & Marketing for the North Carolina Zoo.
Computer systems, cameras, alarms, signage, animal enclosures, and all the necessary infrastructure will need to be installed, and the entire area will need to be themed to resemble Asia with plants, exhibits, signs, and educational & interactive elements.
Part of the theming will include art purchased specifically for Asia through the $500,000 in funds raised by the NC Zoo Society’s Capital Campaign which has a goal of $1 million dollars just for art.
To date the Capital Campaign has raised $29.5 million dollars from 2,700 donations, according to Alive, a magazine published by the NC Zoo Society for its members.
Those funds include a recent $2 million dollar donation from the SECU Foundation to go towards the Pavilion and Classroom which will feature interactive learning and a glass observation wall overlooking an indoor primate habitat.
As of September of 2023, the North Carolina Zoo has confirmed Asia will feature tigers, Komodo dragons, white-cheeked gibbons, giant salamanders, king cobras, tigers, Chinese alligators, wrinkled hornbills, red-crowned cranes, Asian small-clawed otters, cinereous vultures, Visayan warty pigs, and Chinese giant salamanders.
“The animal buildings will have to be set up with new “furniture” for all the animals. In addition, the animals need to arrive and acclimate to their new home and keepers, which takes several months. All these internal tasks add to the timeline for completion,” says Villa.
Those animals will come from other Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) institutions with many of the animals being a part of the Species Survival Plan. The Zoo says they are actively working on animal placements now. The Zoo Society will cover any costs associated with transferring the animal to the zoo.
While not causing any delays currently, the Zoo is waiting on this year’s state budget, which will hopefully include the state-funded staffing positions for Asia. “The North Carolina Zoo requested 100 positions for the opening of Asia. We are hopeful that the upcoming state budget will include most or all of the requested positions”, says Villa.
Asia is currently projected to open sometime around the summer or fall of 2026.
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