Building a new frontier for conservation and education
Market
Buildings
Key Services
Construction
Preconstruction
Self-Perform
Strategic Partnerships
Virtual Design & Construction
Delivery Method
Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR)Capacity
425 AcresThe challenge
We are leading construction of a massive zoological park in North Saint Louis County, Missouri. When it opens to the public in 2027, the 425-acre Saint Louis Zoo Wildcare Park will support 350 animals while offering guests all-new experiences at a world-class safari park.
Guests will connect with wildlife through walking and driving safaris, dine in a modern restaurant, enjoy specialized retail experiences and 360-degree views from an 11-story observation tower. Our team is also building modern specialty barns such as for giraffes and rhinos, at the Kent Family Conservation and Animal Science Center, which comprises 61 acres of the campus.
We achieved a key milestone by completing early on a pilot barn and pasture that allowed animals to begin arriving and acclimating. By the end of 2024, WildCare Park was home to 14 addax, five banteng, six Grevy’s zebra, one Somali wild ass and eight scimitar-horned oryx.
Key Facts
425 acre project site
Multiple endangered species conservation programs
Collaborative engagement across Zoo stakeholders
Challenge met
Commencing in 2022, our project team navigated pandemic supply-chain issues for key materials such as steel, wood and fencing, which were delayed up to one year. And when 63-week lead times delayed electrical gear for the mission-critical pilot barn, our team pivoted to an electrical feed at an existing structure on site. Drawing power from the existing source energized the barn temporarily until the delayed equipment arrived, and the temporary solution allowed subsequent phases of the project to commence on schedule.
This $230 million project also includes demolition, renovation of existing structures, new-construction specialty buildings and single-species pastures, all new roadways and pathways, and new utility infrastructure across the sprawling campus.
Artist renderings courtesy of Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Park. Created by PGAV
Recent Projects
Jack C. Taylor Visitor Center at Missouri Botanical Garden
Energizer Park
