Current IOC building
From KTTC
Who knew that owls could bring people from all over the world to Houston, Minnesota?
The International Owl Center sees thousands of visitors a year, but its current building isn’t the most accommodating for its visitors, staff, and birds.
Staff at the center say a new and bigger space will help facilitate the demand for programming, boost the region’s economic impact by $4.5 million, and bring in more owls.
Karla Bloem, the center’s executive director, says its current location was always intended to be temporary, to build programming and have more time to fundraise.
During the stay, Bloem says they’ve come across several limitations. “I mean, we’re very thankful for the space, but there’s one toilet,” Bloem said.
In addition, Bloem said the center has no parking lot, outdated plumbing, and little program space.
The new owl center is just a few blocks away near the Trailhead Park. The 22,000 square feet building will be nine times bigger than the current space.
It will feature two new program spaces, more bathrooms, a staff shower and an increase in the owl space from five to 28. One of the biggest features will be an owl aviary.
“It’s a design that was pioneered in Germany back in the 1980s, and several zoos in Europe have copied the concept. Nobody in the United States has yet, so these will be the first,” Bloem explained.
The fundraising goal for the new space is $17.3 million.
The center has raised about $1.6 million so far, all by private funds.
There is an online auction that closes on August 3.
The center is hosting its ‘Raise the Roost’ fundraising party on August 2 with a live auction, wine pull and an owl runway fashion show.
Some mock ups of the proposed facilities
I'm kind of shocked to learn there's never been an owl aviary in America before.
There's definitely owls in regular aviaries, which honestly makes a lot more sense than species specific aviaries. Imagine an animal shelter that only accepts Pomeranian dogs.
https://www.discoverycenterdcl.com/aviary
It will be cool to have a place to see almost 30 owls at once though, and it will have non-native stuff like Spectacled and Eagle Owls, so it will be one of a kind in the US, which I think is a great advantage. For owl and raptor people, it will be a must-see thing now instead of the more typical venue it is now.
The most comparable thing I know of is the Scottish Owl Centre that has around 50 species, but I think the people that run it are getting old and trying to find someone to take over.
The legal aspects of caring for, and even more especially, displaying wild animals are very complex. The simplest guess I have is that it doesn't make financial sense.
In the US, getting permitted to have owls is a permit for raptors in general, so you're also licensed for hawks, eagles, kites, falcons, vultures, etc.
The zoo license needed to allow guests is more complicated because there seems to be much more requirements to keep the people and animals safe from themselves and each other and there are lots more facility requirements like public bathrooms, if I remember right.
So to display only owls, you have a whole heap of responsibilities and legalities to consider, but it feels you're targeting a more specific audience by making it solely owls. They have all the stuff to show off and care for all raptors and potentially other stuff if their staff is also licensed for other animals, but they're focusing on a niche market.
They have an hour long webinar on the development of the new center. I haven't gotten to watch it, so I'm wondering if they go into more of the "why" questions.
I'd absolutely go check this place out, I've wanted to for a bit, but part of me thinks it's somewhat crazy, but in a good way. They seem to have done their homework, and the plans are totally amazing, so I look forward to see it get completed with great excitement.