About Us

Value to the Community

The Alexandria Zoo is a major profit center for the City of Alexandria. For every dollar invested in the Zoo by the City of Alexandria, the economic impact on the City is a minimum of four times the investment.

According to the City's Planning and Development Director, the economic impact of 100,000 out-of-town visitors to the zoo is about $633,000 for our community, and even more if the visitors spend at least one night. (2004)

The zoo also enhances the quality of life in Central Louisiana, embraces all segments of our community and serves as one of the largest tourist attractions in Central Louisiana. The citizens in our community can be proud of the educational and entertainment value that our accredited zoo provides.

The zoo is Cenla's largest, year-round, family oriented attraction. This affordable family venue draws a very diverse audience (over 163,000 visitors in 2006). Accredited zoos and aquariums enhance their local economies each year by attracting 143 million visitors, employing 33,300 fulltime workers, and investing over $1.6 billion in operating budgets.