SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Could the old home of the Sacramento Kings become the new home of the Sacramento Zoo?
Sacramento Zoo Executive Director and CEO Jason Jacobs told ABC10 he is exploring the idea of moving the zoo from its longtime Land Park location to the Sleep Train Arena in Natomas.
"This is by no means set in stone, we’re just looking at various pieces of this. We’re in the early phases of planning," said Jacobs.
Jacobs says the Sleep Train Arena would provide ample parking, more space for the current animals, and room for new animals.
"We felt, looking at the Natomas site, that this site has a tremendous potential to be a world-class zoological park, and a destination to help make Sacramento a multi-day destination," Jacobs added.
According to Jacobs, the 14.7-acre campus sees about half a million visitors per year. The proposed zoo in Natomas would be about 100 acres. Jacobs estimates more than a million people would visit the zoo each year.
"I think it's a great idea for a bigger zoo. I think that Sacramento needs it and it's been a long time coming," said Carolyn Vasquez, who was visiting the zoo on Saturday.
Jacobs says he anticipates a new zoo to open by 2027, which is the Sacramento Zoo's centennial birthday.
"This is the early stages," explained Jacobs. "We just looked at this is a potential. We are going to have to work with the City of Sacramento to figure out how viable this is in a long-term scenario."
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