txtiger Posted December 1, 2022 Share Posted December 1, 2022 ^'Jack's Cafe' will break ground once 'Galapagos Islands' opens (so the sea lions can move). 'Birds of the World' seems like it will be comprised of three aviaries, and will also follow the opening of 'Galapagos Islands.' Per the bit of site plan visible above, BOTW will be sandwiched between 'Galapagos' and 'South America's Pantanal.' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X.R. Posted December 2, 2022 Share Posted December 2, 2022 This development cycle for the zoo is fairly incredible. One capital project near completion? Onto the next one. Those more familiar with the zoo, have they always been so aggressive with their development? We've only been going to the zoo consistently for 4-5 years now. Cypress cafe and the development on the west side of the zoo was big in 2017-2019, so I guess yeah, once they finished that they took a little break and then headfirst into this? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txtiger Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 (edited) I bumped my own photos by a follow-up post... See the bottom of page 6 for a bunch of current renderings of the Zoo's new, consolidated Office building, the upcoming Jack's Cafe and Event space, and the forthcoming 'Birds of the World' exhibit (post-'Galapagos' exhibit). The Zoo was not all that spectacular until the opening of the African Forest exhibit, around 2015. That particular development of property was the most initially monumental, and really kicked things off. Improvements to the Elephant yards, the Bug House came after that, and now these additional big, themed experiences. Just for fun, see here the original promo for that, from years ago: Edited December 5, 2022 by txtiger 4 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted December 18, 2022 Share Posted December 18, 2022 Another surprise I found today is the tower crane going up for the parking garage and offices. I talked with an OSC Construction supervisor who said it will be 4 stories with offices on the first and fourth floor with amenities on the top floor. I had never heard of this company but he said they are from Houston and recently did projects in Sugar Land, Northwest 610 loop office project and garage, TMC and the Woodlands. They do interiors, smaller buildings and renovations. This is their biggest project going on right now. Completion date is Oct. '23. https://www.odonnellsnider.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted December 18, 2022 Share Posted December 18, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeerNut Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 First look: Houston Zoo sets opening date for 'Galápagos Islands,' introduces animals' new habitats Quote The wait for "Galápagos Islands," the crown jewel of Houston Zoo's centennial capital campaign, is nearly over. The state-of-the-art, $70 million structure opens to the public on April 7, Houston Zoo announced. 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txtiger Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 Scroll to 38:15 for an audio interview w/ Lee Ehmke re: the new Galapagos Islands exhibit: Experiencing the Galapagos Islands with Tui de Roy and Lee Ehmke - Wild World with Scott Solomon (captivate.fm) 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txtiger Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Sounds like the Zoo is jumping straight into construction of the "Birds of the World" exhibit, which will sit between "Galapagos" and "South America's Pantanal" : How the Houston Zoo moved a flock of flamingos to a new home (chron.com) Once "Galapagos" is open next month, Jack's Cafe and event space should also begin construction in the location of the sea lion's longtime, current pool. Here again is what's On the Boards: ON THE BOARDS — SH|R Studios (shrstudios.com) 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 11 hours ago, txtiger said: Sounds like the Zoo is jumping straight into construction of the "Birds of the World" exhibit, which will sit between "Galapagos" and "South America's Pantanal" : How the Houston Zoo moved a flock of flamingos to a new home (chron.com) Once "Galapagos" is open next month, Jack's Cafe and event space should also begin construction in the location of the sea lion's longtime, current pool. Here again is what's On the Boards: ON THE BOARDS — SH|R Studios (shrstudios.com) I like that the Flamingos are going to be in a fully enclosed exhibit. The concept art for the Jacks Cafe looks amazing! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X.R. Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Kind of crazy to think that Houston parks and zoos got enough philanthropic money to have successive, large projects at the Zoo, the land bridge at Memorial, the Commons at Hermann, and the Wyatt development downtown. It feels like the Zoo is finally starting to reach the type of potential a zoo with its volume of visitors would naturally have. And what's super nice is that they are creating different visitor experiences at different parts of the zoo in terms of places like the beer garden and jacks cafe and such. Way back in the day, the family could do the whole zoo in a few hours, but now there's enough to-do and eat and drink and enjoy that you can't really do that anymore. I take that as a sign of big improvement. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 (edited) On 12/2/2022 at 3:28 PM, X.R. said: This development cycle for the zoo is fairly incredible. One capital project near completion? Onto the next one. Those more familiar with the zoo, have they always been so aggressive with their development? We've only been going to the zoo consistently for 4-5 years now. Cypress cafe and the development on the west side of the zoo was big in 2017-2019, so I guess yeah, once they finished that they took a little break and then headfirst into this? Has to do with the fact that the zoo got a new CEO back in 2015 Edited March 25 by Red Fox 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChannelTwoNews Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2023/04/07/houston-zoo-opens-gal-pagos-islands-exhibit.html " The Houston Zoo opened its $70 million Galápagos Islands exhibit April 7, bringing the zoo's centennial anniversary to a close. The exhibit is the largest component and marks the culmination of the zoo's $150 million "Keeping Our World Wild" centennial capital campaign, which launched in 2018. Completed in a six-year, multiphase plan across the 55-acre campus, the other projects included the Hamill Foundation Black Bear Exhibit (2018), Cypress Circle Café (2018), a renovated orangutan exhibit (2019), and award-winning exhibits Kathrine G. McGovern Texas Wetlands (2019) and South America's Pantanal (2020). For perspective, around $150 million in improvement efforts took place at the zoo between 2002 and 2018, Houston Zoo President and CEO Lee Ehmke previously told the Houston Business Journal." 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEES?! Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 Have any of y’all gotten the chance to go to the new exhibit yet? I’m thinking of going in the middle of the week when it’s less crowded 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sapo2367 Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 I went this weekend -- definitely very busy. It was good overall, the sea lion and coral reef exhibits in particular were very well done. I was hoping for a little more info about the Galapagos islands and the animals, but overall it was good. FYI most of the animals are not from the Galapagos (since those are very endangered and restricted) but are instead 'sibling' species. Like California sea lions and Humboldt penguins etc 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 5 hours ago, BEES?! said: Have any of y’all gotten the chance to go to the new exhibit yet? I’m thinking of going in the middle of the week when it’s less crowded I went on April 8th. Busy of course and they only let a certain amount of people in the exhibit at a time. The sea lions like to hangout where the walk thru tunnel is ( I am pretty sure I stood in it for a good 15 minutes or more) and there is a wave machine in their exhibit as well. Just like their other completed exhibits (Pantanal and Texas Wetlands) there are plenty of animal statues. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X.R. Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 (edited) On 12/1/2022 at 9:50 AM, txtiger said: ^'Jack's Cafe' will break ground once 'Galapagos Islands' opens (so the sea lions can move). 'Birds of the World' seems like it will be comprised of three aviaries, and will also follow the opening of 'Galapagos Islands.' Per the bit of site plan visible above, BOTW will be sandwiched between 'Galapagos' and 'South America's Pantanal.' Bird of the World wasn't on the website until I checked two-three weeks ago: https://shrstudios.com/on-the-boards And its not in planning status like some of the others on the website, so assumedly this thing is ready to go soon. The parking garage can't come soon enough, it seems like the Zoo and Hermann park are somehow bringing even more people in, as the lines to get into the lot are larger than I remember pre-covid, and the parking on the street lining the park is packed by noon on Saturday. Edited April 17 by X.R. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amlaham Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 34 minutes ago, X.R. said: Bird of the World wasn't on the website until I checked two-three weeks ago: https://shrstudios.com/on-the-boards And its not in planning status like some of the others on the website, so assumedly this thing is ready to go soon. The parking garage can't come soon enough, it seems like the Zoo and Hermann park are somehow bringing even more people in, as the lines to get into the lot are larger than I remember pre-covid, and the parking on the street lining the park is packed by noon on Saturday. Do we have a renderings of the garage? Really hope it looks decent since its in the middle of a park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookey23 Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 I could be wrong, but I think the parking garage is just for Houston Zoo staff. It seems like that office/garage building will be the HQ for the Zoo operations. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 (edited) 4 hours ago, X.R. said: Bird of the World wasn't on the website until I checked two-three weeks ago: https://shrstudios.com/on-the-boards And its not in planning status like some of the others on the website, so assumedly this thing is ready to go soon. The parking garage can't come soon enough, it seems like the Zoo and Hermann park are somehow bringing even more people in, as the lines to get into the lot are larger than I remember pre-covid, and the parking on the street lining the park is packed by noon on Saturday. According to the zoo website, BOTW is opening next year. All I know is that there is going to be three aviaries. A walk thru flamingo aviary with other birds, Africa aviary (like shown earlier in this thread) and not sure what the third aviary is going to be…Asia perhaps? Edited April 17 by Red Fox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txtiger Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 (See the series of photos at the bottom of page 6, here, for a rendering of the parking garage, which was shown during an AIA Continuing Education event.) The garage consolidates employee offices and employee parking, and I believe also upgrades facilities for staff who will be on-site to weather future storms. Hopefully the garage allows the zoo to replace the smattering of trailers and building structures currently being occupied by employees, and use that space for a future exhibit. This, unfortunately, wasn't verified as part of the presentation and tour at that time. 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookey23 Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 2 hours ago, txtiger said: Hopefully the garage allows the zoo to replace the smattering of trailers and building structures currently being occupied by employees, and use that space for a future exhibit. This, unfortunately, wasn't verified as part of the presentation and tour at that time. This would make a lot of sense. If you look at the zoo on Google Maps, a surprisingly large area is non-customer facing. It makes a lot of sense for them to consolidate and make more space for exhibits, since they can not expand outward into Hermann Park or the Medical Center Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 10 minutes ago, bookey23 said: This would make a lot of sense. If you look at the zoo on Google Maps, a surprisingly large area is non-customer facing. It makes a lot of sense for them to consolidate and make more space for exhibits, since they can not expand outward into Hermann Park or the Medical Center Per their strategic plan, it doesn't look like they have any intention to expand exhibit space into the back-of-house footprint. I suspect they use every bit of that space pretty intensively as it is. Veterinary clinic food storage commissary administrative offices as mentioned above, the new parking garage/office building will have space for staff to stay in during emergencies to take care of the animals etc, etc. https://s28164.pcdn.co/files/Strat_Plan_Book_MF_3.20.20_Web.pdf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookey23 Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 Thanks for sharing that! I've never seen their strategic plan before and was totally guessing on the office/garage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted April 25 Share Posted April 25 Demo permit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txtiger Posted April 25 Share Posted April 25 (edited) 8 hours ago, hindesky said: Demo permit. (Pin drop ended up on the Carousel building. Actual site for 'Birds of the World' is back up between 'South America's Pantanal's' aviaries and the backside of 'Galapagos Islands.' The online Zoo map has been updated to reflect forthcoming 'Birds of the World' and even 'Jack's Cafe' - GateMap2023.4_Englishweb (pcdn.co) ) Edited April 25 by txtiger 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted April 29 Share Posted April 29 After watching the Facebook live about the Chilean Flamingo, the future Birds of the World exhibit is going to have 3 walk-thru aviaries representing South America, North America, and Africa. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted May 20 Share Posted May 20 The parking garage/offices building is topped out. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted June 1 Share Posted June 1 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted June 3 Share Posted June 3 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted June 25 Share Posted June 25 Screens to cover the parking garage and offices will be on the top floor. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E.Res Posted June 25 Share Posted June 25 I would like to see the park including the zoo, museums, etc to be pedestrian only, no cars. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted July 2 Share Posted July 2 Wow I had no idea this was being built. This is an incredible addition to our zoo. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted July 4 Share Posted July 4 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted July 9 Share Posted July 9 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted July 15 Share Posted July 15 Tower crane has been removed. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted July 27 Share Posted July 27 Page 57 gives us views of the inside of the second floor and the front of Jack's Cafe along with a brief description of the facility. https://issuu.com/lakeflato/docs/harold_simmons_park_select_work_web 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted July 29 Share Posted July 29 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted August 5 Share Posted August 5 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post txtiger Posted August 10 Popular Post Share Posted August 10 Some great aerials of the Galapagos Islands exhibit, from SHR's website: https://shrstudios.com/hz-galapagos 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted August 13 Share Posted August 13 This is how you cover a parking garage. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted August 19 Share Posted August 19 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hindesky Posted August 26 Share Posted August 26 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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hindesky Posted September 23 Share Posted September 23 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Fox Posted September 28 Share Posted September 28 According to the 2023 AZA Conference, the three new aviaries are going to be Africa savanna, North America woodlands, and South America wetlands. I was hoping for an Australia aviary instead of the North America one since we already have the Whooping Crane and Bald Eagle near by. https://annual.aza.org/2023/full_schedule.cfm?session_key=AFDF73B0-F04D-A206-2B64-D9C35213DD74&session_date= 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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