In less than a month, voters in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties will have an opportunity to maintain a key part of Southeast Michigan's quality of life. The August 2 primary ballot will seek a 10-year extension of the Detroit Zoo millage first approved in 2008 with nearly 82-percent support. We urge voters to do the same this year!
The current one-tenth mill property tax is scheduled to expire in 2018. The ballot proposal IS NOT asking for additional money! If it is approved, property taxes will not increase from the amount homeowners are paying now. For example, if your home is worth $200,000, you'll pay $10 annually. About one-third of the Zoo's $35 million yearly budget is covered by the millage.
In our opinion, this regional facility and attraction has earned continued support. In the last 8 years, the Zoo has enhanced its operations, improved its educational programs along with animal care and habitat renovations. It has made important energy-efficient updates and resurfaced the parking lot. No wonder new exhibits such as the Penguin Center, the Arctic Ring of Life and the Amphibian Conservation Center has increased attendance from 1 million to almost 1.5 million last year.
More than 3-thousand animals at the zoo help to make it one of Michigan's largest paid family attractions. Its economic impact to our region is more than $100 million each year. In 2015, the Detroit Zoological Society was named "Best Managed Non-Profit" by Crain's Detroit Business.
If you vote in person or by absentee ballot this summer, we think renewing the Detroit Zoo millage is a smart investment for our tri-county area. Vote "YES" on August 2nd!
I'm Mike Murri, Vice President & General Manager
Broadcast: July 7 - 10, 2016
