FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Teresa Ruiz

July 22, 2004 973-621-4404

Anthony Puglisi

973-621-2542

West Orange, NJ &endash; Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced plans for the construction of a new $1.2 million Black Bear exhibit at Essex County's Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange during a press conference on Thursday, July 22nd.

"Adding a new exhibit to Turtle Back Zoo always is an exciting event. What makes our bear exhibit more special is the fact that it will be the first exhibit we create that will be built following guidelines established by the American Zoological Association," DiVincenzo said. "During the last few years, we have been moving the zoo to where it should be and we are going to get AZA accreditation," he noted about his commitment to earn accreditation from the American Zoological and Aquarium Association.

The County Executive noted that a unique partnership he created with the Zoological Society of New Jersey made building the bear exhibit possible. "The most significant reason we have been able to make so much progress improving our park system is because of the cooperation we have received from our volunteer groups and conservancies like the Zoological Society and Docents. These partnerships have enabled us to obtain valuable grants that maximize our resources to pay for needed improvements," DiVincenzo said.

The concept of the exhibit is for visitors to observe the animals like they will be seen in New Jersey. The two bears will have more than 18,000 square feet of open space to roam and the area will be designed to replicate the bears' natural habitat. It also will have a 375-square-foot pool for the bears to swim in. The main building on the exhibit will be 1,500 square feet and be a combination viewing station and maintenance facility. The viewing station will resemble a house, complete with a kitchen and living room area. Visitors looking out the windows will have the illusion they are standing in their own homes and seeing the bears in their backyard. The viewing station also could be used to stage educational programs or show videos about bears.

Educational areas highlighting foxes, ground hogs and a replica bear den will be situated on the outside perimeter of the bear exhibit. Visitors will be guided through the bear exhibit by following a trail of bear paw prints painted on the ground. Plaques will provide educational information to explain the various facets of the exhibit. Two smaller viewing stations also are part of the exhibit.

"Turtle Back Zoo is unique because all citizens of Essex County feel a connection to the facility and there are so many volunteer members of the Zoological Society and Docents who are dedicated to the zoo," Freeholder Vice President Patricia Sebold said. "I am excited that we are going to have a state-of-the-art exhibit ," she added.

Dr. Jeremy Goodman, Director of Turtle Back Zoo, noted that the bear exhibit is being constructed to meet or exceed standards set by AZA. "We are setting new standards with our bear exhibit. There will be surprises around every corner, face to face encounters with the bears and multi-species exhibits worked into the site. This will be the cornerstone of the new Turtle Back Zoo," Dr. Goodman said.

"Building a bear exhibit has been a goal of the Zoological Society since I became President seven years ago," said Connie Williams, a West Orange resident who is President of the Zoological Society. "The Society worked cooperatively with County Executive DiVincenzo to build an animal hospital and hire a full-time zoo director. Thanks to the commitment and understanding of Joe DiVincenzo, these three goals have been accomplished," she added.

The engineering firm of French & Parrello Associates, P.A. of Holmdel was awarded a $145,432 contract to design the Black Bear exhibit. Diana Weinhardt of Houston, an expert in the design of bear exhibits, was hired by French & Parrello as a consultant on the project. NAVKA Construction Company of Newark submitted a low bid of $1,203,706 to construct the exhibit. Their contract will be presented to the Board of Chosen Freeholders on its July 22nd agenda. Construction is scheduled to begin in mid-August and be completed by the end of 2004.

The project is being funded with a $500,000 Green Acres grant that the Zoological Society of New Jersey received through a successful partnership with DiVincenzo. Essex County is providing the matching funds for the grant through its capital budget, and the Essex County Open Space Trust Fund is helping to pay half of the debt service. The Zoological Society also is donating $100,000 and has secured two additional $100,000 donations from the Goldring Family Foundation and Short Hills resident Ronald J. Mount.

"The Goldring Family Foundation has funded environmental and educational programs around the world, and this has been one of the easiest projects to work with. I appreciate how good an executive Joe DiVincenzo is and how good a director Jeremy Goodman is. Congratulations to everyone here; it's a great job," said Gary Goldring.

"Congratulations on the bear exhibit. This is the culmination of many years of hard work and I know this will be an outstanding improvement to the zoo and great addition to the community," wrote Mount, who was traveling abroad and shared his comments in a letter that was read by Williams.

Also recognized during the press conference was Zoological Society member Jim Garahan, known as the "Bag Man" for the $2 grab bags he has been selling at the zoo for the last 10 years to raise money for a bear exhibit. It is estimated that Garahan has raised $75,000.

DiVincenzo also announced a contest to name the two bears that will be in the exhibit will be held at the zoo.

A great deal of work has been going on to modernize and improve Essex County's Turtle Back Zoo. In what has been the busiest construction season ever at the zoo, Essex County spent almost $400,000 to upgrade fencing and pathways. Work also is continuing on the new, $1.6 million Animal Hospital and $8 million Public Parking Facility by South Mountain Arena. DiVincenzo hired a full-time zoo director, Dr. Jeremy Goodman, in February.

The Essex County Park System was created in 1895 and is the first county park system in the United States. The Park System is now more than 6,000 acres and has 17 parks, four reservations, a zoo, ice skating rink, roller skating rink, three public golf courses and golf driving range.