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Queens Zoo
The Queens Zoo (formerly the Flushing Meadows Zoo and Queens Wildlife Center) is an 11-acre (4.5 ha) zoo at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, between Grand Central Parkway and 111th Street. The zoo is managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society and is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Built along with the Queens Zoo is a children's zoo, which was originally called the Heckscher Children's Farm.
New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses had wanted to add a zoo to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park after the 1964 New York World's Fair. Plans for the zoo were first announced in 1964 as part of the Queens Botanical Garden, but construction for the zoo did not begin until August 20, 1966. The Heckscher Children's Farm, the first part of the new zoo, opened on February 28, 1968, and the rest of the Flushing Meadows Zoo opened on October 26, 1968. The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation contracted Wildlife Conservation Society to operate the zoo in 1988. The zoo was closed for renovations for four years, reopening in 1992; it added numerous animals and exhibits after it reopened. The Queens Zoo was nearly shuttered in 2003 due to budget cuts.
The zoo is home to more than 75 species that are native to the Americas. Unlike contemporary zoos, the Queens Zoo did not put animals in cages except when necessary; since the zoo's habitats are open-air, it focuses mostly on animals native to the Americas. The main zoo (now the zoo's wild side), on the eastern portion of the site, contains landscape features such as a marsh and artificially warmed rocks. The domestic side of the zoo, originally the Heckscher Children's Farm, includes domesticated animals. The zoo's aviary is a geodesic dome designed by Thomas C. Howard of Synergetics, Inc. and used during the 1964 fair.
The zoo is part of Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. The park's site was part of the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair grounds, and the land saw little development during the next quarter-century. The site of the zoo was part of the Transportation Zone during the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair, when the Chrysler Pavilion and Lowenbrau beer garden occupied the zoo's site. By the 1960s, Queens was the only New York City borough without a zoo. Even before the 1964 World's Fair opened, New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses had wanted to add a zoo to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. The zoo was part of Moses's plans for a system of parks in Queens.
Moses announced plans for the Queens Zoo in February 1964, when he indicated that it would be built as part of an expansion of the Queens Botanical Garden, on the eastern side of Flushing Meadows. In contrast to existing zoos where animals were kept in cages, the zoo was to have an open-air layout where animals could roam. The zoo would have covered either 11 acres (4.5 ha) or 35.5 acres (14.4 ha). That March, Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. requested that the New York City Council revise the City Administrative Code to permit the zoo's construction, and New York state legislators introduced bills to allow the Queens Botanical Garden Society to operate the zoo. The City Council signaled its support for the state legislation, but plans for the zoo were stymied because of opposition to Moses's plans for Flushing Meadows. The zoo was supposed to have been funded using profits from the 1964 fair, but the exposition proved highly unprofitable.
Before the fair closed, there was talk of converting the fair's geodesic dome into an aviary for the proposed zoo. Moses's successor, Newbold Morris, announced plans in October 1965 to spend $1.5 million on the Queens Zoo. Morris recommended that the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) fund the restoration of the nearby New York City Pavilion, allowing the city government to divert funds for the City Pavilion's restoration to the zoo's construction. Ultimately, the TBTA agreed to provide $1.2 million for the zoo in February 1966, which was later increased to $1.92 million. This funding was made possible by a provision that allowed the TBTA to spend money on parks along certain highways. The zoo was planned to cover 18 acres (7.3 ha), and the Heckscher Foundation for Children agreed to donate $120,000 for a 3.6-acre (1.5 ha) children's zoo within the Queens Zoo. Preliminary plans were being drawn up by early 1966. By that July, the city government was planning to construct the zoo on the site of the fair's former transportation area, west of the Grand Central Parkway, rather than next to the Queens Botanical Garden.
Moses attended the zoo's groundbreaking ceremony on August 20, 1966, and the children's zoo partially opened that September. Later that year, the TBTA announced more detailed plans for the zoo, which included a concession building and an aviary within the fair's geodesic dome. The agency also planned to award a $2 million contract for the zoo's operation. The TBTA awarded $2.82 million in construction contracts for the final sections of the zoo in June 1967, and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) took over the land the same month. At that point, the children's zoo was planned to be completed in late 1967, followed by the rest of the zoo early the next year. Ultimately, the zoo cost $3.5 million to construct.
The first animals began moving into the Heckscher Children's Farm in February 1968, and Moses dedicated the children's farm on February 28 of that year. Moses opened the rest of the Flushing Meadows Zoo on October 26, 1968. The children's farm was initially free to enter, as was the rest of the zoo. The zoo also had pony rides and a carousel, for which an additional fee was charged. Tatiana Gillette-Infante, a former debutante, was hired as the Flushing Meadows Zoo's first supervisor. Soon after the zoo opened, there were reports of people cutting fences, abusing the zoo's birds, and stealing animals from the children's farm for joyrides. In addition, the zoo frequently experienced blackouts, as the park's underground electrical ducts ran through marshland. The zoo recorded 100 blackouts in its first three years, some of which had lasted as long as five days. These issues prompted Gillette-Infante to request that the city hire more zookeepers.
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Queens Zoo
The Queens Zoo (formerly the Flushing Meadows Zoo and Queens Wildlife Center) is an 11-acre (4.5 ha) zoo at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, between Grand Central Parkway and 111th Street. The zoo is managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society and is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Built along with the Queens Zoo is a children's zoo, which was originally called the Heckscher Children's Farm.
New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses had wanted to add a zoo to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park after the 1964 New York World's Fair. Plans for the zoo were first announced in 1964 as part of the Queens Botanical Garden, but construction for the zoo did not begin until August 20, 1966. The Heckscher Children's Farm, the first part of the new zoo, opened on February 28, 1968, and the rest of the Flushing Meadows Zoo opened on October 26, 1968. The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation contracted Wildlife Conservation Society to operate the zoo in 1988. The zoo was closed for renovations for four years, reopening in 1992; it added numerous animals and exhibits after it reopened. The Queens Zoo was nearly shuttered in 2003 due to budget cuts.
The zoo is home to more than 75 species that are native to the Americas. Unlike contemporary zoos, the Queens Zoo did not put animals in cages except when necessary; since the zoo's habitats are open-air, it focuses mostly on animals native to the Americas. The main zoo (now the zoo's wild side), on the eastern portion of the site, contains landscape features such as a marsh and artificially warmed rocks. The domestic side of the zoo, originally the Heckscher Children's Farm, includes domesticated animals. The zoo's aviary is a geodesic dome designed by Thomas C. Howard of Synergetics, Inc. and used during the 1964 fair.
The zoo is part of Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. The park's site was part of the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair grounds, and the land saw little development during the next quarter-century. The site of the zoo was part of the Transportation Zone during the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair, when the Chrysler Pavilion and Lowenbrau beer garden occupied the zoo's site. By the 1960s, Queens was the only New York City borough without a zoo. Even before the 1964 World's Fair opened, New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses had wanted to add a zoo to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. The zoo was part of Moses's plans for a system of parks in Queens.
Moses announced plans for the Queens Zoo in February 1964, when he indicated that it would be built as part of an expansion of the Queens Botanical Garden, on the eastern side of Flushing Meadows. In contrast to existing zoos where animals were kept in cages, the zoo was to have an open-air layout where animals could roam. The zoo would have covered either 11 acres (4.5 ha) or 35.5 acres (14.4 ha). That March, Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. requested that the New York City Council revise the City Administrative Code to permit the zoo's construction, and New York state legislators introduced bills to allow the Queens Botanical Garden Society to operate the zoo. The City Council signaled its support for the state legislation, but plans for the zoo were stymied because of opposition to Moses's plans for Flushing Meadows. The zoo was supposed to have been funded using profits from the 1964 fair, but the exposition proved highly unprofitable.
Before the fair closed, there was talk of converting the fair's geodesic dome into an aviary for the proposed zoo. Moses's successor, Newbold Morris, announced plans in October 1965 to spend $1.5 million on the Queens Zoo. Morris recommended that the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) fund the restoration of the nearby New York City Pavilion, allowing the city government to divert funds for the City Pavilion's restoration to the zoo's construction. Ultimately, the TBTA agreed to provide $1.2 million for the zoo in February 1966, which was later increased to $1.92 million. This funding was made possible by a provision that allowed the TBTA to spend money on parks along certain highways. The zoo was planned to cover 18 acres (7.3 ha), and the Heckscher Foundation for Children agreed to donate $120,000 for a 3.6-acre (1.5 ha) children's zoo within the Queens Zoo. Preliminary plans were being drawn up by early 1966. By that July, the city government was planning to construct the zoo on the site of the fair's former transportation area, west of the Grand Central Parkway, rather than next to the Queens Botanical Garden.
Moses attended the zoo's groundbreaking ceremony on August 20, 1966, and the children's zoo partially opened that September. Later that year, the TBTA announced more detailed plans for the zoo, which included a concession building and an aviary within the fair's geodesic dome. The agency also planned to award a $2 million contract for the zoo's operation. The TBTA awarded $2.82 million in construction contracts for the final sections of the zoo in June 1967, and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) took over the land the same month. At that point, the children's zoo was planned to be completed in late 1967, followed by the rest of the zoo early the next year. Ultimately, the zoo cost $3.5 million to construct.
The first animals began moving into the Heckscher Children's Farm in February 1968, and Moses dedicated the children's farm on February 28 of that year. Moses opened the rest of the Flushing Meadows Zoo on October 26, 1968. The children's farm was initially free to enter, as was the rest of the zoo. The zoo also had pony rides and a carousel, for which an additional fee was charged. Tatiana Gillette-Infante, a former debutante, was hired as the Flushing Meadows Zoo's first supervisor. Soon after the zoo opened, there were reports of people cutting fences, abusing the zoo's birds, and stealing animals from the children's farm for joyrides. In addition, the zoo frequently experienced blackouts, as the park's underground electrical ducts ran through marshland. The zoo recorded 100 blackouts in its first three years, some of which had lasted as long as five days. These issues prompted Gillette-Infante to request that the city hire more zookeepers.