The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is exploring plans for a new standalone aquarium on the North Shore.<\/p>\n
The proposed Pennsylvania Aquarium is in the conceptual stage, with an economic impact study underway to assess its feasibility and potential funding sources.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo have an aquarium \u2013 a full, large, major aquarium \u2013 we think it\u2019s just a great opportunity for the city,\u201d said Jeremy Goodman, Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium President and CEO.<\/p>\n
Early concepts envision a large-scale, immersive aquarium designed to expand aquatic conservation storytelling, strengthen Pittsburgh\u2019s role as a national leader in conservation and environmental education, and boost tourism and job creation.<\/p>\n
No final location decisions regarding the location have been made yet as site feasibility is still being evaluated by a coalition of local government and community organization leaders.<\/p>\n
Goodman said a complete list of members involved in the process has yet to be determined, but he has heard positive feedback so far.<\/p>\n
The idea for a stand-alone aquarium in the North Shore had the support of local government officials on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe appreciate the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium\u2019s leadership and vision in expanding this important educational and cultural institution,\u201d said Molly Onufer, spokeswoman to Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O\u2019Connor.<\/p>\n
Abigail Gardner, spokeswoman for Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said the county is looking forward to the coalition\u2019s evaluation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere could be great synergy with other North Shore institutions, and where better to have a state aquarium that is a draw for locals and visitors alike?\u201d Gardner said.<\/p>\n
The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is one of six major zoo and aquarium hybrids in the United States and is home to more than 8,000 animals representing over 600 species.<\/p>\n
The organization\u2019s research and conservation projects are recognized globally and represented on all seven continents and five oceans and as a regional attraction with a global impact, it is exempt from federal income taxes as a non-profit.<\/p>\n
The zoo is American Humane Conservation-certified and accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the Zoological Association of America, and the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums.<\/p>\n
Details about whether the project will ultimately move forward remained uncertain as of Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The existing aquarium, located in Highland Park, was built in the early 2000s.<\/p>\n
Aquariums typically have a 25-year life cycle before requiring significant renovations, Goodman said.<\/p>\n
He said whether the existing Pittsburgh aquarium would be relocated to the North Shore and combined with the proposed Pennsylvania Aquarium will depend on space and overall feasibility.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just going to let the process play out,\u201d Goodman said.<\/p>\n
Goodman said he expects a feasibility and economic report on the project to be finished late spring or early summer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium is exploring plans for a new standalone aquarium on the North Shore. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":141453,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[73,75,74],"class_list":{"0":"post-141452","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-pittsburgh","8":"tag-pittsburgh","9":"tag-pittsburgh-headlines","10":"tag-pittsburgh-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141452","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141452"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141452\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/141453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141452"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141452"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141452"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}