The ARC Project
In April 2019, Zoo Knoxville announced a joint $5 million gift from Jim Clayton and FirstBank. It supported the construction of the 2.5 acre Clayton Family Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Campus and the 12,000 square foot FirstBank ARC Center, a state-of-the-art reptile facility. The ARC was the next major project in the zoo’s Dream Wilder capital campaign – the largest and one of the most important projects in Zoo Knoxville’s history.
Zoo Knoxville’s herpetology team is internationally acclaimed for its expertise and work to save critically endangered amphibians and reptiles. The use of the ARC acronym for the new campus is a reflection of the role Zoo Knoxville has as a modern day “ark,” and the work being done to save animals from extinction. While Zoo Knoxville’s herpetology department is ranked among the top in the country, only 10% of the animals were on view in the former, aging facility.
The $18 million project has created an unparalleled level of guest experience at Zoo Knoxville, with immersive educational elements focusing on core STEM concepts. The ARC has also welcomed exciting new species such as Cuban crocodiles, a greenhouse that allows guests to enter and watch herpetologists at work, and outdoor wetlands that serve as an ecological study habitat where children can collect specimens and take them back to an Adventure Lab to study.
To add to the HUGE excitement, some of Zoo Knoxville’s most popular residents, our North American River Otters, are getting an awesome new home as part of this project.
The ARC opened in April 2021.
You can still be a part of the largest project in Zoo Knoxville’s history!