THUNDER BAY -- Lorraine Lortie-Krawczuk believes the Chippewa Wildlife Exhibit still has great value to the city.
The president of Friends of Chippewa Park said the educational opportunities the wildlife exhibit provides to the city’s children are well worth the $100,000 in funding the city contributes per year.
“I love bringing my kids here. They’ve been coming here since they were born,” Lortie-Krawczuk said.
“I think the wildlife exhibit gives them the opportunity to see animals they wouldn’t see in the wild…You don’t get to see them this close up, especially in the winter.”
The future of the wildlife exhibit has been called into question in the past couple of weeks as city council looks
Coun. Rebecca Johnson has called for the closure of the exhibit to save money, while Coun. Shelby Ch’ng wants the park closed because she disagrees with using city dollars to keep animals in captivity. In the past Mayor Keith Hobbs has publicly stated that he also disagrees with the city funding the exhibit.
For the second consecutive year the gates of the wildlife exhibit are opened during the Family Day long weekend to allow people an opportunity to see the animals in the winter.
Attendance was slow on Saturday during the first chance this year, likely due to cold temperatures.
Last year saw about 1,000 people visit during the winter, which Lortie-Krawczuk said proves there is a public interest in keeping the park open.
The Friends of Chippewa Park have also started a petition which they hope to bring before council to further illustrate the demand for keeping the wildlife exhibit open. As of Saturday afternoon more than 325 people had signed the online petition.
“We think it is an important part of Chippewa Park and of the city and recreational opportunities that are available,” Lortie-Krawczuk said.
“We’ve had a lot of support and a lot of people want to see the exhibit maintained and with some additional funding.”
She added that many of the animals in captivity are rescues, were born at Chippewa or were transferred from other zoos. They would not be able to survive in the wild, she insisted.
The exhibit will be open on Sunday and Monday from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
