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My opinion by Jim Kiser: An enormous dilemma

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Sierra Tucson
Eating Disorders Program Coordinator

In response to Star editorial columnist Jim Kiser's Feb. 12 piece, quite frankly, deciding what to do with Reid Park Zoo's elephants is not an "Enormous Dilemma," as stated in the headline.

Whether we have elephants here at the zoo has already been decided. They are here and we expect them to stay. Here are the facts:

● Reid Park Zoo is the most popular and most visited Parks and Recreation facility in the city of Tucson, with more than 435,000 people visiting annually.

● The zoo is an accredited institution. There are more than 2,000 zoos and menageries in the United States; only 211 are accredited.

That's right; Reid Park Zoo is in the top 10 percent holding these highest possible professional standards.

● Verbal exit surveys have shown that the elephant exhibit is the most popular exhibit in the zoo.

● In June 2005, the city of Tucson went on record and formally passed a resolution to build a new African habitat.

The city made this decision as a result of overwhelming support of these projects by its constituents.

● The city and the Parks and Recreation staffers are professionals who have assembled an approved master plan for the zoo.

Many of the components in the master plan have been completed.

The new Conservation Education Center is our current project which will be followed by the construction of the African habitat.

● The new seven-acre addition to the zoo is an African Habitat with the elephants as the main focus.

The proposed $8.5 million cost is for the construction of a 3-acre elephant habitat as well as the necessary infrastructure to complete the African portion of the zoo.

● There is a strong public-private partnership with the zoo and the Tucson Zoological Society.

We, and the public in general, are poised to move forward on the African habitat project in the very near future.

● Right now, there is approximately $12,000 in the Tucson Zoological Society's restricted account for the elephant habitat.

Most, if not all, of these donations have been unsolicited. This is because there has been no formal effort or campaign to fund-raise for the African habitat at this time.

There is no correlation between the amount of money in this account to public interest or for support of the elephants.

The collective message is clear. The citizens of Tucson and Pima County want the elephants here and the zoo staff will continue its tireless effort to provide the highest professional care in a state-of-the-art facility.