Adjacent to Bungarribee’s new picnic area and playgrounds in the parklands, the zoo will provide family fun, recreation and ecological education.
Some proposed exhibits include:
- glassed observation areas for hippos, crocodiles and other aquatic life
- Australian reptile and nocturnal animal houses
- African grasslands with elevated viewing walkways to see lions, cheetahs, elephants, wildebeest, giraffes and rhinos
- native waterways with animals such as bull sharks.
Environment Minister Mark Speakman said the focus on native animals and indigenous culture would be a highlight.
“I’m not lion, when I say this zoo will create fantastic memories for hundreds of thousands of Sydney families every year,” Mr Speakman said.
“I’ll stick my neck out and predict the giraffes will be hugely popular, which is a tall order.”
The new zoo, if approved, will open in late 2017 and attract about 745,000 visitors a year.
The zoo will target the growing number of international tourists visiting the west of Sydney as they travel to and from the Blue Mountains plus provide more jobs during its construction and running.
The zoo is also in talks with Western Sydney University about potentially establishing a Centre of Excellence in Wildlife Conservation – a research facility housed on the Zoo site.
Find out more about the Western Sydney Parklands.
