When Roger Williams Park Zoo opened in 1872, its collection of animals was small and included raccoons, guinea pigs and squirrels. Not exactly a must-see attraction.
Things are quite different these days.
The zoo is now marking its 150th anniversary, fresh off a record-setting year in which 834,960 people visited its collection of more than 800 animals and its special events in 2021. That performance makes the zoo a top tourist attraction in the state, but zoo officials are aiming for more.
A 20-year master plan that was unveiled in 2015 and was budgeted in three phases at $75 million called for the additional zoo programming and the construction of an education building, an event pavilion and exhibits featuring bears, penguins, sea lions, reptiles and tigers.
During phase one, the zoo completed construction on its Faces of the Rainforest exhibit. Most recently, zoo leaders are in the process of preparing for the return of the Asian Lanterns Spectacular, which opens April 13. The event will feature dozens of large glowing lanterns throughout the zoo grounds.
Also, the zoo is under new leadership. Stacey Johnson, a former director of conservation science operations for the San Diego Zoo, took over as the Roger Williams Park Zoo executive director last month.
“I think we are growing as a zoo,” said Ronald Patalano, the zoo’s deputy director of operations. “I think by offering events and building more programming into our daytime offerings, you’re going to see the zoo continue to grow.”
Kristen L. Adamo, CEO and president of the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau, agrees.
“The zoo was our success story during the [COVID-19] pandemic,” said Adamo, who also serves as a trustee and treasurer for the Rhode Island Zoological Society, the nonprofit that oversees the zoo. “I don’t know of another attraction that was able to stay open for the most part and grow like the zoo did. For us, it was a bright spot.”
It might have been a bright spot, but the zoo couldn’t avoid all the effects of the pandemic. In 2020, attendance sank to 262,090, down 61% from 675,886 the year before. But the attraction quickly bounced back with the record year in 2021.
The zoo’s total revenue for 2021 was $16.1 million, a $5 million increase over the zoo’s high-water mark of $11 million in 2019.
Adamo says the zoo will continue to grow through increasing visits, remaining on an upward trajectory.
“There are a couple of reasons for that,” she said. “No. 1: outdoor activities are still going to be really important; No. 2: it’s affordable; and 3: it’s part of [Roger Williams Park], which is [also] celebrating its 150th anniversary.”
Adamo says a key piece of the park’s anniversary is the $5 million Gateway project, a new visitors center at the park’s Broad Street entrance, which will include picnic areas, concessions, ticket sales, a play area, public restrooms and event space. Construction will be completed this spring, funded in part with $4 million in American Rescue Plan Act money.
Special events have been so successful at the zoo that Adamo says the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau built its Halloween event marketing campaign around the zoo’s Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular.
“It’s such a powerful draw. Not only in Rhode Island but regionally,” she said. “It’s also a bunch of really arresting images to use in a marketing campaign that it’s been the basis of a very successful Halloween marketing initiative for us for probably about a decade.”
Anika Kimble-Huntley, chief marketing officer at the R.I. Commerce Corp., says the zoo’s success is an encouraging indicator for the state’s tourism industry.
“Many sectors of the visitor economy here in Rhode Island have performed well, especially compared to our competitive states due to the leisure drive market,” she said. “We do expect growth in 2022 and beyond.”
Kimble-Huntley says the zoo is important from a tourism perspective because it is a major attraction with a busy calendar of events, such as the Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular and Holiday Lights Spectacular. “This assists us in tourism because their content is engaging and marketable and provides fun for all ages,” she said.
Kimble-Huntley says R.I. Commerce is in discussions with vendors that provide analytics, data visualization and the ability to track visitor activity. The data will enable the agency and the state to do predictive analysis of future visits, analyze the economic impact of events and attractions, and help forecast statewide hotel booking trends.
“Our goal is to use this data as a resource to help the zoo and other attractions with key insights to assist with their marketing and growth efforts,” she said. “Their success is Rhode Island’s success.”
Patalano, who served as interim executive director after Jeremy Goodman stepped down in August, says his favorite part of working at the zoo is looking after the diverse collection of animals located on the 40 acres of zoo grounds.
“Some of it is like any other job,” he said, “but there is something different about working at the zoo. You feel like you have a purpose – taking care of the animals.”
