Tuesday, January 29, 2019

City Council Approves Contract Negotiations with New Zoo Management Company

The Jackson City Council voted unanimously to enter contract negotiations with ZoOceanarium, LLC to manage the Jackson Zoo at a special meeting yesterday.  ZoOceanarium will replace the Jackson Zoological Society, which has managed the zoo since 1986. 




The zoo has fallen on hard times in recent years as attendance fell from over 185,000 ten years ago to 76,6000 visitors in 2018. The city had to give $200,000 to the zoo last August. The city also had to repay $350,000 to the Department of Finance & Administration after it was discovered the former executive director spent $350,000 of state bond funds on operations.

The Board of Directors voted last March to move the zoo from its current location on West Capitol Street to LeFleur's Bluff state park on Lakeland Drive.  Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba strongly opposed the move.  The lease with the JZS expired in October.  Mayor Lumumba took advantage of the upcoming expiration and issued a request for proposals for the management of the zoo.

The companies submitted bids, ZoOceanarium, LLC, Jackson Zoological Society, and Zoo Managerial Services, LLC.   ZoOceanarium earned the highest score, beating JZS by 2.6 points.

The City Council discussed ZoOceanarium's proposal with company representatives yesterday at a special session.  The proposal is posted below.


The company is incorporated in Missouri.  It operates several zoos and aquariums. Managing Partner Chris Davis and Erin Clark, Director of Projects, spoke to the City Council.  The bid states the company has 120 employees.  It is best known for operating Dubai Safari and the Green Planet in Dubai.  It also operates the Longemont Zoo and Safari Park in Shanghai, China.

The lease will be for five years.   Mr. Davis said he visited the Jackson Zoo.  He said he would evaluate the zoo.  He said some staff would have the change to remain while bringing in ZoOceanarium employees. He said it was "too early" to determine cost of operations.  Councilman Dekeither Stamps asked if  zoo annual memberships would be honored.  Mr. Davis said they would be while Ms. Clark said it would be foolish to reject those who support the zoo with their checkbooks.  Mr. Stamps also asked if the company would be required to provide regular financial reports to the city instead of audits that were 12-18 months old.  Mayor Lumumba said the company would provide at least quarterly financial statements.

The Lumumba administration will enter contract negotiations with ZoOceanarium.  The City Council will vote on wether to approve the contract. 

Chief Administrative Officer Dr. Robert Blaine said under questioning from Councilwoman Virgi Lindsay that a non-profit organization would be needed for fund-raising.  Dr. Blaine said there was a possibility the Jackson Zoological Society could be used for fund-raising. 



27 comments:

Anonymous said...

If all of the City Council voted for this, it can't possibly be good.

Anonymous said...

Great plan Mayor. Use JZS for fundraising - they have done such a stupendous job ofor that over the past few years. Keep on keeping on - the city has plenty of money to support this west Jackson facility just for the sake of continuing what has always been.

Anonymous said...

This is the phase of negotiations where the mayor and councilmen find out what's in it for them.

Anonymous said...

Do the greenhorns at ZoOceanarium know that historically the funding they are counting on from the City does not arrive reliably on-time and in the agreed-upon amounts? ZoOceanarium’s boast that the Zoo can become “self-sustainable” in its current location is a serious case of naïveté.

Kingfish said...

Part of the problem was the ED picked board members, or had a disproportionate say in who they could be.

The study from a couple of years ago chastised the society for having a weak board. It said other boards of similar organizations were geared towards fund-raising, unlike JZS.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, like the list of fundraising suggestions on Page 49 haven't all been tried before in some form or another. LMAO.

Anonymous said...

Close.The. Zoo.

Anonymous said...

So... JZS can stick around and raise money for the new zoo management company who (presumably, since they were selected for the job) will not support the plan to move the zoo to Lefleur's Bluff. Who wouldn't want to be part of JZS and support that???

Anonymous said...

Doesn't JZS own almost all the animals?

Anonymous said...

I wish I thought new management would help the zoo survive, but it is not. The location is the problem. Unless it is moved to a better location, Jackson will soon become a city without a zoo. .

Unknown said...

Two hundred miles north of here Memphis has one of the most successful zoos in the nation. On a nice weekend there are so many visitors you can't get near the place. Reason? City support, management and LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.

Anonymous said...

good lord. this 'management' group is going to raise the stature of the zoo? their documentation looks like sophomore business class final projects....


Anonymous said...

So a company this size, operating worldwide, uses LegalZoom for incorporations? And the Managing Partner, Chris Davis, has a serious gap in his resume from doing anything meaningful with Zoos or animals. Sketchy group.

Anonymous said...

Here, here 2:41. The same for H'burg and NOLA to the south.

Anonymous said...

At the end of the day this about segregation. If the zoo was relocated in a better/safer location whites would over run the place. Think about it.

Anonymous said...

The city can't fix potholes, They can't control the gangs. They can't keep the sewers and water lines fixed. They can't keep the streets from caving in. They are losing businesses right and the tax base associated with them. Most of the city council is a joke.


And they will revive the zoo and make it famous once again?



!!!! BRAVO !!!!


We salute them.

Anonymous said...

4:31: Okay, at your instruction, I thought about it. Conclusion: it’s the crime, the nastiness of the area, and the fact that I desire to do better with my life than go to that area. If that’s what segregation is, then tuff nuts.

Anonymous said...

5:26, you forgot to mention the roving packs of feral dogs. You know, the ones that routinely kill zoo animals.

Anonymous said...

My primary concern is jobs. I understand that some of the current zoo staff may be let go - but, it would be a shame to have the bulk of the workforce let go merely to have an outside team come in and, five years later, depart. IMO, the current workforce is a strength/benefit for the city. Replace management and the office staff - but, there should be an effort made to keep and retain Mississippi workers.

Anonymous said...

@6:44

This time I'll type slower. The folks in charge of the zoo DON"T WANT WHITES OVER RUNNING THE PLACE in fact I don't think they want us around at all and they damn well know we're not coming to the zoo where it is now.

Anonymous said...

The management is in AbuDabi? And they talk to the City Council over Skype?

Yeah, this will work.

Anonymous said...

It's a perception of a functioning zoo.

Anonymous said...

i wonder how much they want from the city to run it. seems like they havent' discussed money yet....

this 'company' will pull out before 3 years go by..

Anonymous said...

A lot of red flags go up with this “company”. To add to the growing list is Mr. Davis started another company like this the called A-Z Consulting. Yet his resume says he’s a consultant with this firm. Also, these people have mostly marine mammal credentials and experience. According to what they listed they are use to managing institutions with multi million dollar budgets. They really do not understand the dynamics of the zoo here. They had very few answers in the council meeting for a reason.

Anonymous said...

I worry for the welfare of those poor animals under what is very likely a scheme.

Anonymous said...

Another blow for Jackson, courtesy of our esteemed leaders. Seriously, does anyone think that a company out of AD is going to come in and reform our zoo? Why? They cannot possibly expect to make money or even break even so what is their motivation for "investing" in Jackson? And what are the polticos expecting from agreeing to this? I'm sure there's not profit motivation involved. This is crazy.

Anonymous said...

This firm obviously is quite shady and they have fooled the city administrators. But then again. Have they? They will be the final nail in the coffin of the zoo and the administration can say we tried and that they, Zooceanarium, failed us and brought the zoo to closing.
This firm also has drank the AZA kool-aid and will try to ram their policies down the zoo’s throat like the former and current administrator. Look at all that has happened because this zoo has followed and tried to maintain AZA accreditation. And after all this they dropped their membership and yet all them threats made never came about. The zoo needs to focus on reinventing itself and surviving and forget about AZA and this firm Zooceanarium. If they had. The zoo would still have elephants and a whole bunch more to celebrate. Let’s not forget it’s the zoo’s one hundredth birthday.



Recent Comments

Search Jackson Jambalaya

Subscribe to JJ's Youtube channel

Archives

Trollfest '09

Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


Note: Security provided by INS.

Trollfest '07

Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

Note: Security provided by INS
.