Welcome to the monkey house
The Warsaw Zoo is planning investments worth some zł.27 million to make its animals feel more at home, and, rather unsurprisingly, to make the place more attractive to visitors. The construction of the aviary for white-tailed eagles, which started only recently, will be followed by works on an additional enclosure for giraffes, carried out by Firma Remontowo-Budowlana Ryszard Warchulski for zł.350,000. The new investments are dictated by the animals' needs. "The animals have become more beautiful, and, for example, the giraffes got pregnant and need more space. In the case of the white-tailed eagles, an analysis showed that due to a lack of space they do not want to reproduce," explained the director of Warsaw Management for the City's Expansion (SZRM), Bogdan Romaniuk.
Further investments include building a primate house and hippopotamus building. Built on one hectare, the primate house will consist of two structures, one for chimpanzees and one for gorillas. The investment, which is worth some zł.12 million, is planned for 2006-2007. "The project is ready and a tender will be settled in a few days time," said Romaniuk.
Although the hippopotamus building had not been planned for this year, it is possible that the project will start soon, as the documentation is ready and the construction permit has been issued. This investment, which is an estimated 14 million, also includes building a 100-cubic-meter aquarium for exotic fish and sharks.
Romaniuk admits that even if the Warsaw Zoo is perhaps somewhat neglected and forgotten by adult Varsovians, it is a major destination for many visitors, including school groups from other Polish towns - and it is for them that the zoo wants to be attractive.
"The problem is the location of the zoo," admits Romaniuk. Indeed, being situated on the right side of the Vistula river, it is sometimes forgotten by regular tourists, who usually head for the Old Town. An answer to this is a planned footbridge for pedestrians over the Vistula river joining the zoo with the Old Town. A step further is a gondola line, which, however, is opposed by managers of historical buildings.
