Future of Your Zoo

From the beginning, this was always about your Zoo and your role in bringing this extraordinary vision to life. 

Since 1965, Reid Park Zoo has been built and supported by Tucson. Thanks to Tucson voters in the November 2017 election, a one-tenth of one percent sales tax has been instrumental in transforming Reid Park Zoo into the incredible modern animal care facility you know today. Over the last nine years we’ve worked diligently to improve the Zoo for animals and guests alike. These important funds have made it possible for Reid Park Zoo to:

• Replace habitat mesh, viewing windows, and guest railings throughout the Zoo, ensuring comfort and safety.
• Hire the Zoo’s first two full-time veterinarians to care for the incredible animals that call the Zoo home.
• Expand grounds and maintenance teams to ensure Reid Park Zoo is clean and well-maintained, both in guest areas as well as ensuring animals have comfortable, climate controlled behind the scenes areas.
• Add more animal care team members, giving animals more opportunities for training and enrichment to ensure they are happy and healthy, as well as more opportunities for regularly scheduled keeper chats that provide informative learning experiences.
• Fix outdated water systems and install new shade structures for the comfort of the animals and guests.
• Increase our browse program, giving Reid Park Zoo’s animals the best in animal care with the addition of fresh tree branches, essential for a healthy diet.
• Expand the Zoo’s accessibility programs through the Act One Culture Pass and discounts for WIC/SNAP cardholders to ensure Reid Park Zoo is a Zoo for All.
• Increase education programs to inspire the next generation of animal lovers and conservation advocates. 

This is just a small number of the activities that fall under the terms “maintenance and operations” which impact the well-being of animals and guests every day!  As part of meeting the commitment to our community, the following capital projects have also been completed:

• Moving the flamingo flock to the front of the Zoo in a freshly constructed habitat that better meets their needs for water depth and nesting.
• Constructing a new front entry, bringing more shade, additional cashier stations, and areas for groups to gather — essential amenities as the Zoo grows.
• Bringing squirrel monkey and sloth to the Zoo through the construction of new habitats.
• Refurbishing and expanding existing habitats for: jaguar, African wild dogs, and Andean bear.
• Bringing an appreciation of biological diversity to the playground with the addition of the multisensory Angel Charity for Children World of Play.
• Constructing Pathway to Asia (opening late 2026), a new addition that will connect Tucson to animals of the world’s largest continent. This extraordinary space will feature the Zoo’s first-ever reptile house, welcome red pandas, and fill the Zoo with the beautiful sound of gibbon song in the morning. Major habitats also include those for Malayan tigers — establishing the Zoo as a conservation and breeding center for these highly endangered big cats — Asian small clawed otters, sand cats, and an aviary with a daily feeding experience for guests.

… and we’ve got more work to do. The next phase of Reid Park Zoo improvements will move inside the Zoo footprint you’ve known and loved for decades, delivering bigger spaces and smiling faces by improving existing Zoo infrastructure. 

Expedition Africa

With Expedition Africa, the center of the Zoo will be transformed, giving giraffe, rhino, and lions more room to roam — and more experiences for guests. 

Though inspired by Africa, this plan is deeply grounded in Tucson. Materials will be regionally sourced, and desert-adapted landscapes will echo the Sonoran surroundings. Expedition Africa will feature murals by local artists that tell stories that connect global wildlife conservation to the city’s own artistic heartbeat.