Dane County  
Minutes - Final Unless Amended by  
Committee  
Henry Vilas Zoo Commission  
Consider:  
Who benefits? Who is burdened?  
Who does not have a voice at the table?  
How can policymakers mitigate unintended consequences?  
Tuesday, March 5, 2024  
8:00 AM  
Henry Vilas Zoo  
A. Call To Order  
Others present: Ronda Schwetz, Joseph Darcangelo, Kristin Moala  
A motion was made by ROSS that the Zoo Commission meeting be called to  
order at 8:04am. The motion carried unanimously.  
6 - TAG EVERS, JEFFREY GUNDERSON, SARAH JUSTUS, MICHAEL  
PETERSEN, ANNE ROSS, and JASMINE BANKS  
Present  
Excused  
1 - Supervisor CECELY CASTILLO  
B. Consideration of Minutes  
None  
C. Action Items  
None  
D. Presentations  
None  
E. Reports to Committee  
AZA application was submitted at the end of February. The application is the  
culmination of over a year of hard work by staff across all departments. We are very  
proud of the document we submitted. The next step will be to set dates with our  
inspectors for an on-site inspection. We expect that to happen in June or July. Now that  
the AZA application has been submitted, we will have more time to focus on our Edge  
of Africa designs for the new giraffe building.  
Budget - In 2023 the Zoo had a $6.5 million operating budget. The Zoo made over $3  
million in revenue. Some of the number breakdown includes $252,000 on animal food  
and $121,000 on animal medicine. Discussion ensued.  
Staff Updates - Last month we filled a .6 keeper position with an internal hire, which  
opened up one of our FTE keeper positions. That position has been filled by a former  
LTE keeper.  
Animal Updates - with the warmer weather we have an early shipping season. We  
expect to get a female red panda and several meerkats this spring. We will also be  
getting a lot of invertebrates for both the Discovery Center and the Animal Ambassador  
areas of the Zoo. Our very geriatric Indian crested porcupine passed away. At 24.5  
years old he far outlived his life expectancy.  
F. Future Meeting Items and Dates  
The next meeting will take place on April 3, 2024 starting at 8am.  
G. Public Comment on Items not on the Agenda  
None  
H. Such Other Business as Allowed by Law  
None  
I. Adjourn  
A motion was made by JUSTUS, seconded by GUNDERSON, that the Zoo  
Commission meeting be adjourned. The motion carried unanimously.  
Respectfully submitted by Kristin Moala, pending approval of the Zoo Commission