Half-price admission paid off, setting a new attendance record for the Fort Worth Zoo.
On March 13, the number of visitors climbed to 26,433, breaking the previous single-day record of 26,370 guests, which was set during spring break of 2013.
“We are, once again, grateful to the families in North Texas for their support,” Fort Worth Zoo Executive Director Michael Fouraker said in a press release. “Our community consistently shows up for the Zoo, whether exploring new habitats, discovering new animals, watching Zoo babies grow or sending their own kiddos to Zoo school. Their continued loyalty is a major reason why we remain among the top zoos in the country.”
Spring break is typically among the busiest times at the zoo, averaging about 10% of the zoo’s annual 1 million visitors throughout the course of the week.
In preparation for the high traffic, the Fort Worth Police Department deploys 25 to 30 individual officers to intersections surrounding the zoo to help manage the flow of traffic.
“We go out in a blitz and make sure that traffic can get in and can get out as they’re going to and fro — and they can do that safely,” Fort Worth Police Department Officer Buddy Calzada told the Fort Worth Report.
These officers quickly rerouted traffic or temporarily closed streets based on information from the traffic command post.
Knowing that an influx of cars would be coming, the department also spoke with construction crews at work on University Drive, who built a buffer into their project timeline and agreed to pause their projects until the end of spring break.
Scammers tried to take advantage of this high traffic period by selling counterfeit admission tickets allegedly discounted in celebration of the zoo’s 115th anniversary.
Savvy social media users attempted to verify the deal by calling the zoo, alerting them to the issue.
“Because we were aware this kind of scam was going after other zoos and aquariums around the country, we knew immediately that they had targeted us,” Avery Elander, the zoo’s director of public relations and marketing, told the Report.
In addition to sharing screenshots of what patrons should look for, the zoo also reminded guests that the only website selling legitimate tickets is fortworthzoo.org.
If you have purchased a ticket elsewhere, the zoo recommends calling your bank.
“One person did reply,” Elander said, “to let us know that, thankfully, her bank denied the charge before it even went through.”
Editor’s note: This post was updated at 8:30 p.m. March 17 to add additional information about zoo attendance.
Marcheta Fornoff covers the arts for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at marcheta.fornoff@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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