Bristol Zoo: group battling to stop site becoming housing

Bristol Zoo has been in Clifton since 1836 but it will close next year to move to a new home in South Gloucestershire

A group has successfully applied to have Bristol Zoo Gardens listed as a community asset in an attempt to stop houses being built on the land.

Clifton and Hotwells Improvement Society (CHIS) is aiming to prevent housing developments replacing the zoo when moves to a new home.

The status gives CHIS the right to bid to own the site if it is put up for sale in the next five years

The zoo says funds generated by housing will help safeguard its future.

CHIS believe that the site, which has been home to Bristol Zoo since 1836, is "too precious" to the city to be replaced by housing.

CHIS will have an option to bid for the site if it is put up for sale within the next five years

"We asked Bristol City Council to list the site as an asset of community value so that if the zoological society try to sell the site, we have an opportunity to buy it and shape its future.

"We are delighted that Bristol City Council has backed our bid to safeguard the historic site for future generations," said Chris Jefferies, CHIS' joint planning coordinator.

The group is backing an alternative plan led by OurWorld Bristol, to create an augmented-reality zoo.

"We call on Bristol Zoological Society seriously to consider this alternative which is so much more imaginative and appropriate than developing the site for private housing," added Mr Jefferies.

The zoo said it had taken the decision to sell the Clifton site and move to the much larger Wild Place north of Bristol to safeguard its future

The zoo has been in Clifton since 1836 but will close in late 2022 and move to its Wild Place Project site, near junction 17 of the M5 in South Gloucestershire, to reopen in early 2024.

Bristol Zoological Society said money from the sale of its current site will create "vital" funds to help deliver the "ambitious plans" for the new Bristol Zoo.

The Society, which owns and operates both Bristol Zoo and Wild Place Project, said the zoo had "suffered years of declining visitor numbers", and had made an operating loss in four of the past six years.

'Special place in hearts'

Chief executive Dr Justin Morris said the society respected the decision to list the site as a community asset.

"We realise the significance and importance of the Clifton site and that Bristol Zoo Gardens has a special place in the hearts of many people," said Dr Morris.

"This is why we are leading the planning process for a high-quality residential-led scheme which respects the history and heritage of the site and gardens.

"There is a huge under-supply of housing in Bristol. New homes are needed in all parts of the city, including affordable homes, to address the housing crisis," he added.

A Bristol City Council spokesperson said that although being listed as a community asset can give groups a right to bid, the owner is not obliged to sell it to them.

"We are fully supportive of their (the zoo) plans to secure its long-term sustainable future within the city region, to ensure the best outcome for staff and the welfare of the animals and to provide future generations with the opportunity to visit and learn at a world-class facility,'' they added.