Duluth zoo faces uncertain future

The head of the Lake Superior Zoo says it's a common question: What's new at the zoo?

The Duluth zoo's future may depend on coming up with a good answer.

The challenge has taken on some urgency because of Duluth Mayor Don Ness' plan to turn the zoo over to the nonprofit Lake Superior Zoological Society by year's end, to help reduce the city's budget deficit. The zoo posted a loss of over $600,000 last year.

Last year a national zoo planning firm recommended that the Duluth zoo go to a public-private partnership like what Ness has proposed. The city would continue to own the zoo, but the society would operate it.

The city and zoological society have until late fall to develop a plan to submit to the City Council and the society's board of directors.

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Information from: Duluth News Tribune, http://www.duluthnewstribune.com

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