Cherry Brook Zoo appeals for funding amid cash crunch

The Cherry Brook Zoo is appealing to the City of Saint John for financial help as the organization risks running out of money later this month.

Leonard Collrin, the chief administrative director of the zoo, said the non-profit organization has enough cash in its bank account to meet its payroll on Wednesday.

But Collrin said the zoo’s fate is unclear after this week.

"It's going to be a scrape to be totally honest with you,” he said.

Collrin said he is hoping a new committee created by the city to distribute funds to non-profit groups will give $60,000 to the zoo. That is the maximum the committee is allowed to allocate to non-profit groups.

The zoo also received $60,000 from the city last year.

Even if the committee extends the zoo the maximum amount of funding in February, the facility will have a deficit.

The zoo's financial request is on the agenda for Monday night’s city council meeting.

The Cherry Brook Zoo opened in 1978 on a 14.1-hectare parcel of land in Rockwood Park.

The zoo, which is a non-profit charitable organization, has a Siberian tiger, snow leopard, golden lion tamarin and a Goeldi's monkey. 

Zoo's sustainability questioned

This isn’t the first time that the zoo has faced financial troubles. Last year, the zoo went to city council requesting assistance.

Pat Woods, Saint John’s city manager, told councillors at a recent meeting that the zoo may not be sustainable.

“My impression was that they're hand-to-mouth or on life support, if you will,” he said.

Collrin said the zoo has overcome financial problems in the past, so he’s hoping the same will happen this year.

The zoo’s director said the facility's fate will depend on how the public reacts to news of the financial crisis.

"Depending on how things work out, depending on how the public responds to that, we will make the decision as to whether we go on,” he said.

Collrin said steps have already been taken to cut the zoo’s costs. Collrin has reduced his own salary and his wife, Lynda, who is the director of zoo development, is now a volunteer.

He said a number of other steps are under consideration, including closing down during winter months to become a seasonal operation.

Even if the zoo shuts down in the winter, the animals will still have to be fed and cared for during those months.