Record attendance at Minn. Zoo

Article by: Star Tribune
Updated: July 2, 2012 - 7:40 PM

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At the Minnesota Zoo, a grizzly bear from the Russia's Grizzly Coast Exhibit took to the water to stay cool in the heat of the afternoon. Attendance at the Minnesota Zoo has set a one-year record, zoo officials said Monday. For the year ending June 30, attendance totaled 1,369,515, the highest in the zoo's 34-year history. Memberships to the zoo in Apple Valley also are at an all-time high, with more than 45,000 households.

Photo: Richard Tsong-Taatarii, Star Tribune

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Attendance at the Minnesota Zoo has set a one-year record, zoo officials said Monday.

For the year ending June 30, attendance totaled 1,369,515, the highest in the zoo's 34-year history. Memberships to the zoo in Apple Valley also are at an all-time high: more than 45,000 households.

No big marquee exhibits opened in the past year, but the zoo kept visitors coming with the unveiling of "Penguins of the African Coast" last year, the always-popular "Farm Babies" event this spring, and the reopening of an upgraded tropical reef exhibit. A temporary summer dinosaur exhibit, featuring animatronic beasts along the zoo's outdoor trails, has also been a strong draw, the zoo said.

"The three years of highest attendance in the zoo's history have all happened since 2009," zoo director and CEO Lee Ehmke said. "And we are especially thrilled to report that fiscal year 2012 was our best year yet."

For the previous fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2011, about 1.17 million people visited the zoo. That was down a bit from the previous two record years. PAUL WALSH