ORDINANCE NO. 210849

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Authorizing the City Manager to execute an Agreement with the Friends of the Zoo (FOTZ) for the management and operation of the Kansas City Zoological Park for a five- year term; and subject to the appropriation of funds annually by the City Council authorizing the expenditure of an annual subsidy of $2 million throughout the five-year term of the Agreement.

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WHEREAS, the City owns, and operates the Kansas City Zoological Park "Zoo" located in Swope Park in Kansas City, Missouri; and
WHEREAS, regional support of the Zoo has been further established by some residents of the Missouri portion of the Kansas City metropolitan area through the establishment of the Kansas City Zoological District and sales tax authorization pursuant to Sections 184.500 through 184.512 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri; and
WHEREAS, the City and the Parks Board have determined that it is in the public interest to continue private management and operation of the Zoo through a private not-for-profit organization with relevant experience and capabilities; and
WHEREAS, FOTZ has been dedicated since its founding in 1959 to the support and improvement of the Zoo and currently operates significant facilities at the Zoo; and
WHEREAS, on December 28, 2001 the City, the Parks Board, and FOTZ entered into an Agreement, as amended and restated on April 26, 2007, on January 1, 2012, and on January 1, 2017 (collectively, as amended and restated, the "Original Agreement") which in part provided that FOTZ would manage and operate the Zoo on behalf of the Parks Board and City; and
WHEREAS, the Zoo's annual operating budget is approximately $29 million with the City providing an annual subsidy of approximately $2 million; and
WHEREAS, the Zoo is constructing/building an aquarium that is scheduled to open in the summer of 2023 which will feature eight major habitats supported by over 20 smaller exhibits and will begin at the warm...

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