Toronto Zoo is getting a breathtaking new main entrance

The Toronto Zoo is planning to renovate its main public entrance and gate with a new multi-purpose event and education space called “The Conservation Campus,” according to its 2022 Master Plan.

“Today, the arrival at your zoo lacks a real ‘WOW!’ right near the entry. Two plaza-like spaces exist at the entry; however, animal experiences are quite distant from here,” the plan reads.

A Site Plan Approval application was previously submitted to the City of Toronto in June, and the campus is set to be designed by Zeidler Architecture.

The application includes a single-storey, nine-metre-tall building for guest services, as well as a 12.5-metre-tall community building. Parking and drop-off areas won’t be changed, and entrance gates will remain intact (although one wing is set to be demolished).

The campus, which will be developed with key partners, proposes a theatre hall, research facilities, and event space that can host guests and events beyond regular zoo hours, becoming a launching place for larger discussions about habitat, sustainable resources, and climate change mitigation.

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“The Conservation Campus creates a sense of awe even before entering your zoo gates. Views of animals as guests are entering the zoo site immediately connect guests to your zoo’s mission, remaining with them as they re-encounter these species as they exit, building a deeper connection to your zoo,” the plan reads.

According to the document, the ground floor of the campus will remain public, housing a 9,000-square-foot transportation hub and arrival space.

The plan also details a 215-metre “O-line” with four posts, allowing orangutans to move freely from their habitat to the front entrance plaza.

The project is currently in its pre-construction phase, and no details have been provided yet for when we can anticipate the revamped entrance to be revealed.

On Tuesday, the Toronto Zoo also announced that it was mourning the sudden loss of a two-year-old female Amur tiger named Mila, who was born at the facility.

The tiger — who had moved away from her mother in Toronto to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado — died from a spinal injury on August 25 after slipping off a waist-high bench while under anesthesia for dental surgery.