Denver Zoo set to open 570-acre facility in Weld County
The Denver Zoo has brought animal fun and education to the city during its staggering 128-year run. Now, it will get a bit of an expansion.
A bit is an understatement.
The zoo has begun construction on a new, 570-acre facility in Weld County, according to a Thursday press release. The Lembke Family Preserve will provide the space for temporary relocations from the zoo’s 84-acre Denver campus and become a “conservation center focused on conservation breeding and wild reintroduction of species that are threatened or endangered in Colorado and beyond,” according to the release.
Bob Lembke, donator of the land and president of United Water and Sanitation District, said of the donation, “Denver Zoo has been part of our family tradition since the late 1950s… It’s always a special family outing. With the stewardship provided to endangered species by the Zoo through The Preserve, we hope that the Zoo can be part of our family for generations.”
The land will not be open to the public like the Denver campus. Instead, it will act as an expansion of the zoo’s breeding efforts and space for new animal families.
“The Lembke Family Preserve represents the start of a new era for Denver Zoo and will dramatically expand our capabilities for our animals and Colorado wildlife as we build it out in the coming years,” Bert Vescolani, president and CEO of Denver Zoo, said in the release.
The preserve will begin opening in two phases this year. There is no estimated completion date.
The donation is part of Denver Zoo’s $75 million “Into the Great Wild Open” campaign, asking on generous donors to help the zoo expand facilities and conservation efforts.
One of the most recent additions, as part of the campaign, was the new flamingo living quarters that began construction in 2022 and finished in November of 2023.
The new living quarters seemingly pushed the zoo’s concept of growing and conserving, with five American chicks and four Chilean chicks hatched in the Avian Propagation Center being introduced to the new space.
Now, the zoo will have tons of space to continue their efforts.