THE Shenzhen Safari Park which opened in Nanshan District 17 years ago, will be moved to a new location for better development, said the city s urban planning commission.
In a reply to Zhang Hongqiao, a local adviser who proposed the relocation at the annual session of the city advisory body in March this year, the commission said the government had put the matter on the agenda.
The government looked at alternative locations in Langxin community in Bao an District, Baihua community in Guangming New Zone, Maluan community in Pingshan New Zone and the Tongle community in Longgang District.
The government favored the Maluan community, the commission was quoted by the Southern Metropolis Daily as saying. But it was not decided yet.
According to the commission, just over 1 square kilometer of land in Maluan Suburban Park would be designated for the new zoo. The park, in the Maluan Mountain area, has a variety of vegetation.
The only problem is that transport to the area is inconvenient, which could force the government to reconsider, the commission said. The relocation project would solicit public opinion when the time was right.
Huang Xianda, vice general manager of the zoo, said most zoo employees would object to the relocation after working and living in Xili for so many years.
It was barren land when the zoo was set up here, he said. It took 17 years for them to get used to it before falling in love with the place. They won t agree to be moved to another barren site.
He was also worried that the relocation of animals would not be easy. The zoo has more than 10,000 animals of more than 300 species.
Song Ding, a tourism and property researcher with China (Shenzhen) Development Institution, hailed the relocation plan, saying a relocation would serve the public interest because a zoo should be never too close to populated areas.
As recently as three years ago, Xiao Jinglan, a city legislator, called for relocating the safari park at the annual meeting of the city legislature.
The zoo is too close to populated areas and could pose a danger to public health in the event of disease outbreaks, the proposal said. (Mu Zi)
