Rob Ford: Buyers eyeing Toronto Zoo, theatres

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says "people are knocking on my door" trying to buy the city's marquee zoo and theatres.

The newly-elected mayor told Toronto radio station CFRB Thursday morning that some parties would like to expand the Toronto Zoo in the northeast end of the city to include an amusement park.

"There are people knocking on my door all the time saying 'we would love to buy the zoo from you, but we want to put an amusement park with it'…" he told CFRB's Jerry Agar in an interview.

"We should not be in the business of running the zoo. Let's privatize the zoo, there's a huge amount of money there. You can't put a price on it right now. There are millions and millions of dollars for what people want to purchase the zoo for and add onto."

Selling off the city's zoos — including the downtown Riverdale Farm and the larger Metro Zoo — was part of independent auditor KPMG 's suggestions in a comprehensive document released earlier this summer.

Privatizing the zoo: It’s been done before

In a cost-cutting move, Toronto city manager Joe Pennachetti’s report on the “core services review’’ suggests the city issue a call to bidders interested in buying, leasing or operating the Toronto Zoo.

That’s not a new notion; in fact, it’s a widely accepted practice across North America: Dallas, Texas, privatized the day-to-day operation of its zoo in 2008. Los Angeles has issued an RFP seeking a private sector partner to operate its zoo. And the San Diego Zoo, Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo and the Denver Zoo are all operated by non-profit interests.

“About 84 per cent of major U.S. zoos have privatized. Typically the city retains ownership of the land, buildings and animals, and a private interest manages the day-to-day operation,’’ says Jeb Bonner, vice president and CFO of the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA), a private non-profit supporting the city’s bid to privatize its zoo.

Los Angeles is taking such steps because it’s faced with a shortfall of nearly $500 million in its next budget. The city contributes about $15 million a year to its zoo.

Proponents argue that one upside of privatization is increased donations. The downside is job losses.