#ON HOLD: NEW DUBAI ZOO (DubaiLand)

[dubaiflo]

there was some talk about the palm logo island being natural parks or kinda zoos and i am sure i have seen one or more videos of a zoo island on the world.

also, there is a safari park with zoo which has not yet been officially launched, so maybe this is going to be the new zoo then.

[Rcd]

Some one tell them to create Dubai Animal City

[DG]

^ good idea

[metroreporter]

how bout getting Disney to build an Animal Kingdom park in Dubailand

that way we get:

- a Disney park
- a good zoo

- another cool project in Dubailand

- edutainment


its a win-win situation

[Krazy]

Plans to relocate Dubai Zoo to take two years


A resident bear at Dubai Zoo cools himself down with blocks of ice specially provided as a precaution against the heat.

Dubai: Some of the animals pace up and down, panting and pawing at the ground.

The bears look weary, but relieved when the large blocks of ice are thrown into their cage.

One lays its paw on top of the cube, clearly pleased with the respite from the heat.

It is the height of summer again at Dubai Zoo, which has been housed on the same premises since the late 1960's.

But, according to Dubai Municipality officials, the animals will have to spend at least two more summers there, before the planned move to Dubailand.

"We decided to relocate the zoo to Dubailand, where there has been approximately 80 hectares allocated," said Dr Abdul Hadi Pasha, Head of the Design Unit, at Dubai Municipality's General Projects Department.

"The area that we have at the moment is very small, but the new location will provide a much better environment and habitat for the animals."

Pasha said that this latest attempt to move the zoo was expected to be completed by the end of 2008, with Dubai Municipality in the process of appointing a consultant to oversee the project.

This could not come soon enough for Dubai Zoo, home to over 800 animals, living in an area of only five acres, or 1.7 hectares.

"Although the animals seem to be coping alright this year, we had one pygmy hippopotamus die last year, from what we think was the heat," said Dr Reza Khan, Head of Dubai Zoo.

The zoo, which has between 300,000 to 400,000 visitors annually, has faced criticism over the way in which the animals are kept.

However, Khan says that he and his over thirty members of staff are "more than ready" to move to provide better conditions for the animals.

"We have many local breeds including the Arabian Wolf, the Arabian Wildcat and the Caracal. These animals are generally fine during the summer months, but the ones that suffer the most are the bears, gorillas, chimpanzees and most reptiles.

Khan said that the zoo uses approximately 30,000 gallons of water every day to keep the animals as cool as possible.

"We have such a diverse group of animals, that it is difficult to follow a particular method. We are doing the best we can with what we have," Khan told Gulf News.

"Of course it would be much better if we had a larger premises," he added.

Controversy
Current plan is the fourth in five years

In 1986, the zoo was redesigned, and has remained largely unchanged since.

In recent years, the zoo has courted controversy for the way in which the animals are kept, resulting in a series of moves to change the location.

The current plan to move to Dubailand is the fourth in the last five years.

[dubaiflo]

i really hope to stick to Dubailand now and move their asses finally.

i mean, it takes sooo long.

[Dubai_Steve]

But any new zoo in Dubai should have cooling as required in every animal enclosure. Can you imagine wearing a big fur coat in 50 degree heat with only a small ice cube every now and then to cool you down. The municipality should be made to do the same. (with fake fur of course)

[Dubai_Steve]

[guy_in_dubai]

very clean...

they'd better hurry up woth the zoo!

[thedubailife]

I think the whole point of the new zoo is to make it bigger and of better standard and better looked after animals as they know tourist won't want to see hurt animals and bad enclosures.

[Krazy]

New zoo to have camel safari


The new Dubai Zoo will be located in Dubailand and construction will start this year, says an official.

Dubai: The mystery over the construction and location of a new zoo in Dubai has been resolved.

"Dubai Municipality will build a new zoo in Dubailand and the construction will start this year," said Engineer Eisa Al Maidour, Assistant Director General of Dubai Municipality for General Projects Affairs.

He told Gulf News yesterday that the new Dubai Zoo would be built in cooperation with Dubailand. "We are planning, designing and constructing the zoo on the land provided by Dubailand. It is a joint venture," he added.

Animals from the existing Dubai Zoo in Jumeirah will be moved to the new zoo.

Al Maidour said the zoo will be constructed in phases because it is a huge project that is aimed at attracting not only residents but also visitors from around the world because it will be a major tourist attraction in Dubai.

"During the first phase, we will build the core zoo and shift animals from the existing zoo and it will hopefully be done within one and a half years," he said. Around 1,200 animals are currently cramped in the existing zoo in Jumeirah.

The new zoo, which is being built on 500 acres of land, will also have zoo safari, night zoo, and educational and recreational facilities for children and adults.

The delay in the project happened due to a change of location. "We had plans to build a zoo at Mushrif Park but it was moved to Dubailand because it is a much better location and has easy access from all sides," he said.

"Also, we don't want to build just another typical zoo. We want to be creative and build something different matching Dubai's image. We are in touch with different zoo authorities in the world and will bring best practices to Dubai Zoo," he said.


"We are in touch with different Zoo authorities in the world and will bring best practices to Dubai Zoo," says Engineer Eisa Al Maidour.

Al Maidour said there is a possibility of introducing a camel safari in the Dubai Zoo.

This is the third time during the past five years that the plan for the zoo has been changed. The municipality had first announced building a zoo in Al Mushrif Park in 2003 but the plan was shelved.

Again, the civic body announced building the Dh200 million zoo at a new location in November 2005 in Mushrif area and was supposed to complete the zoo by 2008. There has been a phenomenal growth in the number of zoo visitors over the last few years.

[Dubai_Steve]

That is good news. I have never visited the old zoo because of my principles against torturing of any of Gods creatures. It will be good to see some of the torturing stop at last. Lets hope this will be a good zoo and also an innovative one.

[dubaiflo]

Very cool, some of the best news in the past days.

Sounds great!

[bizzybonita]

good news

[aravinda]

Originally Posted by dubaiflo

there was some talk about the palm logo island being natural parks or kinda zoos and i am sure i have seen one or more videos of a zoo island on the world.

replying to quiet an old post, but according to the Jan edition of National Geographic, two islands are being built for "Sh. Mohammed and his brother". From what the article seems to suggest, these appear to be the logo islands - more so given the fact that his Jumeirah palace is next to the entrance to the Palm!

[Lucifer]

cant waite to see it

[THE DUBAI GUYS]

Relief for zoo animals by year-end
By Ashfaq Ahmed, Staff Reporter
Published: July 30, 2007, 00:01





Arabian Hajar Watch.


African Safari Village.


Entry Complex.

Dubai: This will be the last summer that animals in Dubai Zoo will spend in cramped conditions.

"Construction of a huge new zoo will start in August," said Rashad Bukhash, Director of the General Projects Department at Dubai Municipality.

He said all the animals at the existing Dubai Zoo in Jumeirah will be moved by the end of this year to the new and much bigger zoo being built in DubaiLand. "We have to speed up plans for the construction of the new zoo and the core zoo will be built within three months after construction starts in August," he said.

The civic body is building the zoo in cooperation with DubaiLand on an area of 350 hectares.

Bukash told Gulf News the zoo would be built in stages and will be fully complete in one-and-a-half years by early 2009.

Private investors are also being invited to invest in various projects such as restaurants in the zoo. "We are implementing the best practices in the world," he said.

"We are also building chalets for visitors to stay in the zoo overnight," Bukash said.

Apart from the zoo, the new project will also include a botanical garden.


R

[Bhan Jojo Ngoi]

wow.

[malec]

Let this be the last redesign and that they just build the thing

[Julito-dubai]

so the zoo will be next to Arjan?