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Council votes 5-0 to lease the Amarillo Zoo to Amarillo Zoo & Sanctuary for $1 a year with up to $900,000 in grants
Pulled from the consent agenda at Councilmember Tim Reid's request, item 5.6 awarded a lease for operations and maintenance of the Amarillo Zoo portion of Thompson Park to Amarillo Zoo & Sanctuary, a Texas nonprofit: 20 years with three five-year options, $1 a year, and City grant funding of $150,000 (FY 2025-26), $250,000, $200,000, $150,000, $100,000 and $50,000 (FY 2030-31). The council approved it 5-0. The same day it adopted the 2026 Standards of Care for recreation programs on first reading "with any reference to the Zoo removed."[1][2][3]
Michael KashubaTim ReidDavid PrescottLes SimpsonAmarillo Zoo & Sanctuary (Texas nonprofit, Amarillo Zoo lessee)
What the sources say
- ✓ Verified
Item 5.6 of the March 10, 2026 minutes, "Consider Award - Zoo Lease Agreement," describes an operations and maintenance lease of the portion of Thompson Park known as the Amarillo Zoo, with a lease option for future expansions, an original term of 20 years and three five-year renewal options (35 years maximum). Lessee: "Amarillo Zoo & Sanctuary, a Texas nonprofit organization"; revenue: "Lease amount of $1 annually"; City grant funding of $150,000 (FY2025-26), $250,000 (FY2026-27), $200,000 (FY2027-28), $150,000 (FY2028-29), $100,000 (FY2029-30) and $50,000 (FY2030-31), a total of $900,000; budgeted. [1]
- Annual lease
- $1
- Grants total
- $900,000
- ✓ Verified
Councilmember Reid asked that item 5.6 be pulled from the consent agenda; it was taken up immediately after the consent agenda, presented by Parks and Recreation Director Michael Kashuba, and approved 5-0 on a motion by Councilmember Prescott, seconded by Councilmember Simpson. [1]
- Votes for
- 5
- Votes against
- 0
- ✓ Verified
KFDA reported that the City keeps ownership of the zoo, its land and the animals; that the initial term ends December 30, 2046; that the lessee must obtain accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums or the Zoological Association of America and have a veterinarian with zoological experience available; that existing programs such as field trips and camps can change only with council approval; and that the Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Amarillo Zoo & Sanctuary will be separate nonprofits. Councilmember Tim Reid said: "This really is an important thing that we have a legitimate nonprofit that has the bona fides to run a zoo." [2]
- ⚠ Sources differ
The City support for the zoo was described differently at different stages.
Reported value 1[4]
- Description
- City subsidy reduced by $50,000 each year over six years
Proposal as presented to the Parks Board, December 3, 2025 (starting subsidy not stated in the minutes).
- ✓ Verified
At the same meeting the council adopted Ordinance No. 8240, the 2026 Standards of Care for Parks and Recreation youth programs, on first reading 5-0 "with any reference to the Zoo removed" (motion by Simpson, second by Tipps). [1]
- ✓ Verified
On March 11, 2026 the Parks director told the Parks Board the lease had been approved and that remaining steps were "providing proof of the required reserve fund, proof of insurance, and obtaining the signed document." Earlier, on January 14 and February 11, 2026, he told the board negotiations with Wild West Wildlife were ongoing and that final decisions would be made by the council. [3][5][6]
