BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — A West Michigan zoo has been chosen as a recipient of Lowe's "100 Hometowns" project, an initiative to celebrate its centennial.
The former children's zoo in Binder Park Zoo in Battle Creek will soon be transformed into a new exhibit all about dinosaurs.
"This is part of Lowe’s "100 Hometowns" project in celebration of their 100 year anniversary," said Binder Park Zoo President and CEO Diane Thompson.
Binder Park Zoo was one of 100 projects chosen by Lowe's Home Improvements to receive a grant as part of a $10 million commitment to give back to communities across America.
"We do have a strong relationship with our local Lowe’s company and their staff there. They let us know about the grant and even submitted it for us," said Thompson.
Zoo officials said the grant money is going towards a new exhibit called "Zoorassic Park".
The $75,000 project was already planned, but with the extra money, they're able to make it even more extravagant.
"We will have, I think, close to 20 life-size dinosaurs in this exhibit. We will develop some programming around it. There will be keeper tails, some education programs, special events to engage some of our areas of our community to this," said Binder Park Zoo Manager of Marketing and Development Leslie Walsh.
"What we will be able to do with this grant is put new roofs on all of the structures. One of the buildings needs new windows, we will use the grant for that. We have lots of fencing that we will be putting in. All of that gets covered by the grant, so the wow factor will be huge with this," said Thompson.
With the timeless fascination of dinosaurs, zoo officials said it's a huge asset to zoo-goers and community members.
Binder Park Zoo said it believes this exhibit will attract people from all over to learn more about this time period.
"We decided to bring this exhibit to the zoo to satisfy that as well as tying modern-day conservation to the story of dinosaur extinction," said Walsh.
"Zoorassic Park" is scheduled to open sometime this summer. For more information, click here.
