'NEW' ZOO DRAGGING ITS TAIL PRICE, TIME RUN FAR OVER FORECASTS.

Byline: Dana Bartholomew Staff Writer

Officials promised two years ago that a ``brand new'' Los Angeles Zoo would open this summer, but the $110 million makeover has run into serious problems that have put it two years behind and forced plans to be scaled back.

City and zoo officials say soaring building costs, project redesigns, shoddy construction and a potential lawsuit will delay the opening of the exhibits of sea lions, elephants, gorillas and other animals.

With the zoo partially torn up and animals sequestered in temporary digs, some officials question whether the voter-approved bond money for the face-lift is being wisely managed.

``I am very concerned about the project delays, the impact such delays could have on the overall cost to taxpayers and any negative impact these construction delays could have on the health of the zoo's elephants and other animals,'' City Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa said.

Last month, Villaraigosa wrote to the zoo's general manager, John Lewis, to demand ``a substantive response'' to questions about zoo construction, bond financing and the health of the zoo's elephant herd.

A city zoo bond oversight committee is scheduling a special meeting to discuss how to get projects back on track.

A one-year delay of the Pachyderm Forest exhibit has worried animal welfare activists. They say the zoo's temporary elephant quarters are inhumane and potentially dangerous for this fall's homecoming of Ruby, a city-owned African elephant sent to Tennessee last year for a breeding attempt at the Knoxville Zoo. Zoo officials say the temporary facilities are adequate for the elephants and all other animals.

``The Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens is experiencing a great renaissance, but as we get toward our goal we've fallen a little bit short in getting everything built,'' said City Councilman Tom LaBonge, chairman of a committee that oversees the zoo. ``We'll be able to show off a world-class zoo that's (now) on third base before it gets home.''

City residents have long supported a massive zoo makeover, approving bond measures including Propositions A, K, CC and C. The propositions have raised the lion's share of the $109 million for the zoo's construction plan.

The makeover includes the $16 million zoo entry and sea lion exhibit, the $12 million Children's Discovery Center, the $12 million Pachyderm Forest and the $7 million Campo Gorilla Reserve - all are under construction but behind schedule.

In 2002, Ed Maruska, then interim general manager, announced that ``by 2004, we'll practically have a brand new zoo.''

Cost overruns and construction delays are forcing zoo officials to rethink some new features to keep the total price tag at $109 million.

The $12 million Reptile and Insect Center, scheduled for 2006, is now likely to open in 2008. The construction of the $17 million Rain Forest of the Americas is on schedule toward completion by 2008. And estimates to build both are now millions over budget, which is forcing officials to redesign the projects.

The zoo entry plaza, sea lion exhibit and children's center, scheduled to open this summer, are now expected to open next summer, according to a July report from the Zoo Bond Oversight Committee.

The elephant and gorilla exhibits in an area known as the middle zoo are now expected to open in summer 2006, about a year behind schedule.

``The middle zoo is where we're having the primary delay, mostly because of the construction climate,'' said zoo General Manager John Lewis, who took over the job last summer.

Dana Bartholomew, [phone]

dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com

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LOS ANGELES ZOO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS

SOURCE: Los Angeles Zoo and City Administrative Office