Those of us who have lived in Hattiesburg our whole lives remember the days when admission to the Hattiesburg Zoo was completely free. One of my earliest memories is going to the zoo with my father several times a week as a child. I knew every lemur by name.
Of course, if I were a child today, I wouldn’t be granted that experience. Every visit to the zoo with my father would cost $14. One trip might not break the bank, but the three times per week that we averaged? That adds up.
Recently, as I looked over the latest financial report from the Hattiesburg Convention Commission, which includes the Hattiesburg Zoo, I realized that the zoo can and should be free again.
Since 1991, the Convention Commission’s primary source of funding has come from the Convention Promotion Tax, a 2% sales tax on restaurants and liquor stores in the city. That tax provides the Convention Commission more than $5 million every year.
That money helps cover costs for a lot of programs, primarily the Lake Terrace Convention Center, the Saenger Theater, the Hattiesburg Zoo, and the African American Military History Museum. But only that last program (a great one) is free to the taxpaying public. Shouldn’t we be getting a little more bang for our five million bucks?
I don’t expect the Convention Commission to start offering free tickets to events at the Saenger, or free convention services at Lake Terrace. But at the very least, can’t Hattiesburg residents get basic admission to the zoo?
A quick look at the numbers indicates that the zoo, and the Convention Commission in general, wouldn’t take much of a hit if we ended general admission fees. In 2020, facing an economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Convention Commission slashed expenses by $1.5 million dollars (including $600,000 in payroll). Gross revenue only dropped $400,000.
The fact is, the Convention Commission has a surplus of $25 million. With that in mind, it’s unseemly to ask a family of four that lives in the city to pay $28 to see the lemurs that I knew so well.
I’m not proposing anything extreme here. The zoo can continue to charge for special events, camps, train rides, and the like. They can keep selling merchandise and concession food. But let’s treat the Hattiesburg Zoo like a library. Give residents a zoo card, offering free general admission year-round. We can keep charging admission for those who live outside the city. After all, they may not be paying as much in the Convention Promotion Tax. But we shouldn’t be making Hattiesburgers pay twice.
Make the Zoo Free Again. Put that on a red hat and sell it.
"Opinion" - Google News
April 22, 2021 at 11:25PM
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OPINION: Make the Zoo Free Again - HubcitySPOKES.com
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