TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Aquarium's Business Is Doing Swimmingly

ADVERTISEMENT

By TED JACKOVICS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 28, 2008

TAMPA - The Florida Aquarium has surpassed budget goals for attendance and revenue for the first five months of the fiscal year through February, and preliminary indications for March show that the Channel District attraction has continued its strong showing, aquarium chief executive Thom Stork said Thursday.

Much of the boost came from an increase in Tampa Bay tourists. Stork said they included more international visitors and spillover from this past week's NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the St. Pete Times Forum, a few blocks away from the aquarium on Channelside Drive.

"We are now ahead of last year, which was a record year," Stork told the aquarium's board of directors at its quarterly meeting Thursday.

The aquarium drew 215,622 guests from October through February. That's 6,222 more than anticipated in the budget and 6,600 more than the same period a year ago. Revenue, including contributions, for the current five-month period was $5.32 million, $66,011 more than budgeted.

Preliminary March figures show attendance is up about 4 percent through Wednesday compared with a year ago when about 50,000 people visited the aquarium over the same period.

The positive figures reflect a rebound in 2008 compared with a slump the last three months of 2007.

That's welcome news to the aquarium, which is scheduled for re-accreditation this year by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. The Silver Spring, Md.-based organization focuses on animal care, wildlife conservation, education and science. Only about 200 zoos and aquariums have earned accreditation from the AZA, which is known for a cautious, authoritative approach to its audits.

The AZA recognizes it is important for aquariums to have good attendance and financial health in order to serve as a community link for people to learn about their environment, said Paul J. Boyle, senior vice president of the AZA, who addressed the board Thursday to outline the association's goals.

The good financial news carried over to a Florida Aquarium report of its conservation programs, which involve biologists and educators on the aquarium's 135-member staff, and many of its 270 volunteers.

The programs, under the auspices of the aquarium's Center For Conservation, continue to evolve into separate focuses on aquatic health, a study of aquatic ecosystems and a division of diving that uses science divers to investigate Florida's waters, said Ilze Berzins, vice president of biological operations for the Florida Aquarium.

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817 and tjackovics

@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT