Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium begins 20-year transformation

The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is renovating its grounds over the next 20 years.

“It’s no secret that many of our facilities are over 30 years old and at the end of their lifespan,” said Jeremy Goodman, the zoo’s president and CEO. “What was state of the art 30 years ago is no longer state of the art.”

The plan will revitalize the entire Highland Park campus. The first phase is expected to cost $54 million and include a new front entrance and accessible path, an expanded giraffe barn, a revitalized orangutan habitat and the zoo's educational complex.

The giraffe barn will be open for viewing year-round, with an expanded giraffe yard, opportunities for public interaction and feeding, and hay storage, the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium said.

For the zoo's Borneo orangutans, siamangs and black-backed tapirs, the new multi-story outdoor swing enclosure will be built on a hillside and will include waterfalls and pools underneath. Even in winter, out-of-season visits are possible.

Goodman said the zoo plans to open a full-time licensed preschool in the expanded education center, something about a half-dozen zoos have also done successfully. The renovations also include more classrooms and office space.

Goodman said each of the three phases will take between five and seven years to complete, with the first phase breaking ground before the end of the year.

Guests will see a temporary entryway in November as the new main entrance represents the first part of the two-year plan. Goodman said the new entrance gates will be ready in summer 2025.

The plan was initiated over a year and a half ago, Goodman said, and the zoo waited to make the announcement until the zoo received its updated accreditation from the Association of Zoos & Aquarium.

Households that were zoo members were sent a survey during this period to collect responses about what families would like to see at the zoo in the future, as well as feedback on the current state of the zoo, Goodman said.

“We wanted to make it short enough for people to fill out … but detailed enough to give us some useful information,” he said.

About 23,000 member households received a survey, and Goodman said the zoo received 9,000 responses with feedback.

“Twenty years is a long time for a plan, we know how to put it into action,” he said. “At the end of the plan, things will have changed again. It’s a living document.”

Goodman didn't say how much the 20-year plan would cost in total, saying, “It's constantly changing based on economic forecasts.”

Money for the three phases will come from fundraising, foundations and state funding, he said, as the zoo awaits feedback on state funding requests.

“The Pittsburgh community is incredibly philanthropic,” Goodman said. “We leave no stone unturned and really try to preserve a variety of resources.”

He said he hopes the renovations will also be an economic driver for the Pittsburgh region.

“The plan will truly make us a world-class zoo and a major tourist destination,” Goodman said.