KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Zoo announced Saturday it will temporarily close its indoor animal habitats to the public.
The change is to assist with social distancing, according to a brief statement on the zoo's website.
A representative with the Zoo sent us the following statement:
As always, the health and safety of our guests, employees, and animals is our top priority. We have been continually assessing all of our safety measures in the week since we opened to ensure that they are working as intended, and continue to make adjustments as necessary.
Today [Saturday] had the nicest weather that we have seen since reopening, and that seemed to encourage guests to spend a little more time in certain areas of the Zoo than they did earlier in the week. We moved lines and made some other adjustments throughout the day but have decided to temporarily close all of our indoor animal habitats in order to eliminate those lines altogether. Over the next few days, we will work to determine a way to open them back up, continuing to limit the number of people inside to no more than 10% capacity while also not having wait lines outside the buildings.
We have marked the concrete outdoors with social distancing markers and will continue to do that, of course, but will also be increasing the number of Zoo staff who will be verbally reminding guests to social distance in any areas where visitors are lingering.
The zoo had a soft opening May 16 with new rules for guests. Guests must reserve an entry time at kansascityzoo.org, and they recommend all visitors wear face masks. The Africa Tram is still operating, but will operate under social distancing guidelines.
Hours for the zoo are Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and weekends from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information about the zoo, call 816-595-1234.
