The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium has requested nearly $1 million from the city of Columbus to support work on its aging sewer system.
Nicolle Gomez Racey, a spokesperson for the zoo, said in an email that the funding request from the city would contribute to the planning, design and implementation of improvements to the system that was first installed in 1983. The zoo’s sewer force main system moves wastewater from the zoo to the public system.
The project is not related to the zoo’s planned $175 million John F. Wolfe Aquarium project and its hotel expansion, Gomez Racey said.
“The zoo has invested substantially in maintaining this infrastructure over the years and is now planning for the next generation of utility assets needed to support continued
operations,” Gomez Racey said.
The entire project is expected to cost more than $10 million, but the zoo is expecting a better idea of how much this would cost at the end of the design process. Gomez Racey also said that the zoo is not planning on requesting funding from Franklin County as well.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther’s record-setting 2026 capital budget proposal, first presented Sept. 11, includes $950,000 for this project.
Columbus City Council will hold a hearing Oct. 19 to start talking about the capital budget and is expected to vote on the entire $2.8 billion plan later this year.
Dispatch government report Jordan Laird contributed to this report.
Anna Lynn Winfrey is a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch. She can be reached at awinfrey@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Zoo seeks $1 million from city of Columbus for sewer repairs
