Late this afternoon Rolling Hills Zoo (RHZ) announced that effective immediately they would be closing their doors to guests until further notice due to the situation surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19). All scheduled events and programs have also been cancelled or will be rescheduled at a later date.
“Our primary obligation is to provide the very best care for our animals,” shared Bob Jenkins, RHZ Executive Director. “That requires a professional staff who are healthy and able to work. By closing to the public we are reducing the risk of exposure to our staff members.”
“While we will see a significant reduction in revenues, when you weigh the financial loss against the risk of being open, we know that this is the right thing to do for our community,” stated Jenkins.
While gates will be closed to the public the staff will continue to work onsite to provide care to the nearly 300 animals that call Rolling Hills Zoo home, as well as maintaining Zoo’s infrastructure and work on areas and projects that are harder to accomplish with guests in the park. They will also be performing a very deep cleaning of the zoo to get ready to welcome guests when the zoo re-opens.
In summary Jenkins added, “As the one of the largest tourist attractions in the region, we are sending a very strong signal that as leaders in the care of wildlife species and public education, we are doing what is best for them, for our employees and volunteers, and for our community which we serve.”