Zoo Idaho in Pocatello opens gift shop
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POCATELLO — After more than two years of production delays, the Zoo Idaho Pocatello gift shop and entrance opened with a ribbon-cutting Thursday.
“The excitement is super-high, but there is also a measure of relief,” zoo superintendent Peter Pruett said. “It’s been a slow process … but this is cool, this is absolutely cool.”
The 1,200-square foot building will house the ticket booth as well as gifts and knick-knacks. The zoo broke ground for the structure in January 2021, but even that step in the process was delayed due to the COVID pandemic.
Jennifer Erchul, who was president of the Zoo Idaho Zoological Society when plans for the gift shop were set in motion, said seeing the labor finally come to fruition is “so exciting.”
The gift shop is a product of a long-term partnership between the zoo, zoological society and Connections Credit Union.
“We’re connected with the community, that’s something that we take pride in, and something we want to help is the quality of life in the communities we serve,” Connections spokesman Aaron Fewkes told EastIdahoNews.com.
Erchul has since stepped down as president, leaving shoes so large it took two members of the zoological society to fill them.
Co-president Chuck Rizzo called the zoo “an absolute gem” within the southeastern Idaho community.
“It’s a place where you can bring your kids on a Saturday,” Rizzo told EastIdahoNews.com. “It’s a place where kids can have their first experiences with our native wildlife.”
Asked if there are any plans of advancement or additions currently in the works for the zoo, Rizzo offered a wry smile and said, “We have a lot of things planned,” declining to comment on them specifically at this time.
Zoo Idaho is inhabited by animals primarily indigenous to southeastern Idaho, many of which have been rescued by Idaho Fish and Game. That truly makes Zoo Idaho Pocatello “an Idaho zoo,” according to Pruett.
And the gift shop matches that. After all, he added, “What says Idaho better than a log cabin?”
Along with housing tickets and momentos, Pruett continued, the gift shop allows the zoo to showcase local talent.
“We’re slowly bringing in our local artisans to sell. We’re an Idaho zoo — we want to sell Idaho products. Within Pocatello, we’ve got some amazing people that are already producing amazing local products,” Pruett said.
It also finally provides visitors a clear marking of the zoo’s entrance, he joked.
“This is just another opportunity to see the progress that’s happening, not only in Pocatello but at Zoo Idaho,” Erchul said of the support of the city, the zoological society and Connections. “The community support has built this building, and it just shows that the zoo is here to stay, and we are getting bigger and better every day.”