What really happened at the City Council’s meeting about Billy the elephant?
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
Billy, the L.A. Zoo’s sole Asian elephant resident, will remain at the zoo following yesterday’s City Council vote to continue work on the controversial Pachyderm Forest exhibit.
The meeting that culminated in the council’s 11-4 decision lasted three hours and included impassioned pleas from both sides of the debate over Billy: those who argued that the zoo was the best possible place for him, and those who were just as firmly convinced that zoo life is detrimental to the health and well-being of elephants. Our colleague Carla Hall reported on the dramatic event:
When it became clear the zoo would get to keep its elephant, supporters wearing green T-shirts emblazoned with ‘Save Pachyderm Forest’ jumped to their feet screaming while well-heeled zoo fundraisers embraced. A couple of hundred opponents, meanwhile, looked on soberly and trudged out.
Hefty offers of money abounded: The zoo’s fundraising arm promised to cover the city’s $14.5-million commitment to the exhibit. Retired game show host Bob Barker, meanwhile, pledged $1.5 million to pay for Billy’s upkeep if he were moved to a sanctuary, as animal welfare advocates hoped.
While celebrity animal activists including Barker, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Nealon and Cher voiced their opposition to the Pachyderm Forest project and lobbied for Billy to be sent to the PAWS sanctuary (at one point Tomlin compared Billy’s proposed living space in the exhibit to ‘the equivalent of a three-car garage’), zoo advocates said they had Billy’s -- and Angelenos’ -- best interests at heart.
And labor activists argued that moving Billy would mean losing jobs. Hall explains:
The [Los Angeles County Federation of Labor], along with the Service Employees International Union Local 721, had argued that completion of the elephant enclosure would preserve much-needed construction jobs. Though [Maria Elena Durazo, the head of the federation] didn’t speak, she sent council members a letter urging them to support the exhibit and sat in the front row throughout the debate -- something she rarely does.
But advocates for Billy’s move to a sanctuary disagreed, says Hall:
‘I think what happened is labor came forward and said they’d lose jobs -- which was not true,’ said animal welfare advocate Melya Kaplan. ‘If the space was used for other animals, then labor would continue to have jobs.’
Despite all the debate about Billy himself -- which ranged from discussion of the amount of space Asian elephants roam in the wild to the trouble that advocates say elephants often have with their feet when living in captivity -- the council’s decision may have been based in large part on finances. From NBC Los Angeles:
Shutting down the construction project would require the city to repay $5 million in bond money within the next 60 days. Los Angeles has already spent $12 million on the exhibit. Building the Pachyderm Forest will cost the city $1.2 million a year in debt payments beginning in 2010 and continuing for 20 years. The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, which has already donated $4.8 million to the elephant exhibit, has pledged an additional $6 million, which will require the city to borrow less money and therefore cut down on those debt payments, according to a report from the City Administrative Officer.
Indeed, this line of reasoning seemed to sway Councilman Bill Rosendahl, who reversed his previous stance on the Pachyderm Forest and voted to complete it. From Hall’s story:
‘If it’s going to cost more to shut it down,’ [Rosendahl] said, citing warnings by city financial analysts that there would be hefty costs associated with redesigning the space for other animals, ‘and I have faith in the people at the zoo, I’m switching my vote.’
Councilman Tony Cardenas, one of the most outspoken opponents of the exhibit’s completion, said in a statement following the vote, ‘Today, the council sent a frightening message to the public that, even in light of new facts, politics trumps the truth.’
But Greater Los Angeles Zoo Assn. (GLAZA) president Connie Morgan said the Pachyderm Forest ‘will not only be a humane, state-of-the art habitat for Billy and other endangered Asian elephants but a global leader in conservation efforts for this magnificent animal.’
Construction is expected to be complete around 2010, after which the zoo plans to add more Asian elephants to its herd and begin a breeding program.
Correction: GLAZA’s president is Connie Morgan, not Connie Martin as we originally stated.
--Lindsay Barnett
RELATED:
Jack Hanna announces his support for the L.A. Zoo’s controversial elephant exhibit
Conservationist Daphne Sheldrick: Billy the elephant belongs in a sanctuary
Zookeepers to City Council: Let Billy the elephant stay at the zoo
Activists rally for the L.A. Zoo’s Pachyderm Forest; Bob Barker donates to the opposition
L.A. City Council set to decide the fate of Billy the elephant
City Council votes to keep Billy the elephant at the L.A. Zoo
Top photo: Children watch Billy in his temporary exhibit after the Los Angeles City Council vote yesterday. Credit: David McNew / Getty Images.
Middle photo: Cher holds up a ‘Free Billy’ T-shirt at the City Council chambers. Credit: Nick Ut / Associated Press.
Bottom photo: Zoo supporters react to the council’s decision. Credit: Nick Ut / Associated Press.