The master plan for the Lincoln Park Zoo in Manitowoc includes a pair of improvement projects that the City’s Parks & Recreation Division hopes to accomplish in the next few years.
Division Manager Curtis Hall tells Seehafer News the first short-term goal is to renovate the former wolf enclosure and give the mountain lions a new home.
“What we would do is take the former wolf exhibit and renovate it into a new mountain lion exhibit,” Hall explained.
The old wolves passed away from natural causes, old age, as they were about 15-years-old.
The renovation cost is $300,000 for the mountain lion exhibit and they’re able to fund that through a 3-way match, including $100,000 from the city capital budget, Lincoln Park Zoological Society, and the West Foundation.
Hall explains the second priority in the master plan is the conversion of the former deer-pen into a coastal wetland aviary for an interactive educational experience.
“A number of different boardwalks, overlooks, and outlooks along the river would give people a view of the Little Manitowoc River,” Hall said. “We would put in a number of bird nesting platforms, osprey nests, wood duck boxes, purple marten boxes, and bring in a lot of native plant life.”
He says they are just starting the design plan for the ‘aviary and that should be either a 2023 or 2024 construction project.
Citizens can see the $10-million, 110-page master plan by going to the Lincoln Park Zoo website.
