Bristol Zoo: Proposal to build virtual reality attraction

The world's first virtual reality zoo could "bring magic" to Bristol, the city's former mayor has said.

Bristol Zoo gardens, which is set to close and be replaced by housing, could become home to the "hugely educational attraction" George Ferguson claimed.

Called OurWorld, it could feature a lido, a 'wild island' and a 100ft tall viewing tower.

The zoo wants to sell the site for housing to safeguard its Wild Place attraction to the north of Bristol.

Architect Mr Ferguson, a member of the campaign for OurWorld, told around 100 members of the public who attended an online meeting that the attraction would cost an estimated £75m to build and take five to seven years to complete, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

On the other hand, he said, Bristol Zoo's plans to sell the land with planning permission for a "posh housing estate" would make Clifton even less diverse and leave it "a rich person's residential suburb".

The zoo will present its case at another online meeting hosted by the Bristol Civic Society on 10 November.

OurWorld's plans would preserve the listed buildings on the 186-year-old zoo site, the online meeting heard.

More entrances would be created so that the public would be able to enjoy the gardens for free, and a raised "gallery promenade" for visitors would be constructed.

People would be charged for such things as virtual reality headsets, but prices would be kept at a level that "doesn't exclude anyone", Mr Ferguson said.

There would be no on-site parking, but instead a shuttle bus service to park-and-ride sites.

Clare Wilks, director at Bristol-based design and planning consultancy LDA Design, was alongside Mr Ferguson to present the case for OurWorld.

She said the gardens would be a "playground for the imagination" and the "technology of tomorrow" would keep the site relevant for the next 100 years.

Mr Ferguson said visitors would also encounter large beasts built by Arcadia, the company behind the giant spider that is a regular feature of Glastonbury music festivals.

"Regenerating the site is the most important thing to do…and creating magic," he added.

"Augmented reality gives you the experience in the place.

"You can travel backwards in time, you can travel forwards in time, you can travel in scale. 

"You can become the same size as a mammoth or the same size as other big beasts or insects that are on the site."

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