The Lincoln Park Zoo’s capstone project for The Pride of Chicago capital campaign was to be the renovation of the Kovler Lion House. Now, thanks to a $15,000,000 donation from Richard and Roxelyn Pepper, both the interior and exterior of the historic building can undergo renovations and “an expansive new habitat for lions,” as described in a Lincoln Park Zoo (L.P.Z.) press release, can be built. In recognition of Mr. & Mrs. Pepper’s munificence, it is to be called the Pepper Family Wildlife Center. Goettsch Partners is the architectural firm and PJA is the exhibit designer.
“This generous donation from Richard and Roxelyn Pepper begins an exciting transformation at the heart of the zoo,” stated Biff Bowman, Chairman of the L.P.Z. Board of Trustees. “The commitment to the zoo shown by not only the Peppers, but also the zoo’s Women’s & Auxiliary Boars and my fellow trustees–especially Barbara Malott Kizziah, our campaign chair who has been instrumental in securing other critical gifts and activating our philanthropic community—helps us secure a sustainable future for one of Chicago’s most historic institutions.”
“As long-time Chicagoans, our family cares deeply about Chicago. We want to build a legacy that ensures its historic institutions are sustained while modernizing with the times,” stated Richard Pepper. “We see this gift as an opportunity to give back to the city that’s given so much to us with its natural, cultural, and business landscapes. What better place to support than a historic institution that’s free for all of Chicago to enjoy?”
The Lion House was built in 1912 at a cost of $160,000. Dwight H. Perkins (1867-1941), an architect of the Prairie School style of architecture, designed the building. He won a gold medal from the American Association of Architects.
Dr. Lester E. Fisher, Director of the Lincoln Park Zoo (1962-1993), hoped to build a reproducing population of Asiatic lions, a subspecies now found only in India’s Gir Forest, in American zoos after Lincoln Park Zoo received a breeding pair of such cats –the only Asiatic lions in the United States of America at the time – in 1973 from the New Delhi zoo in exchange for two jaguars.[1] This dream became a reality in 1975 when the lioness Chandra gave birth to her first litter, four lion cubs.[2]
The Lion House was renovated in the 1960s and again in the 1980s thanks to the L.P.Z.’s Landmark capital campaign. The latter project cost $3,900,000. While some older cats found temporary homes in other facilities on the zoo grounds, most of them went to other zoos until the building was ready to accommodate them again. Cheetahs returned to the building for the first time since 1972. Other big cats housed in the building were Asiatic lions, Siberian tigers, Afghan leopards, and snow leopards. Five more spacious exhibits replaced thirteen exhibits that had been arranged along the eastern wall. Each new exhibit simulated the natural environment in which the animals could be found in the wild, including cliffs and streams. High tension wire one-sixteenth of an inch in dimeter, as well as a guard rail, replaced cages. On the west side of the building, guests could view the big cats through glass walls. The lion house reopened in 1990. At the time, it was named in honor of the Kovler family.
“We are so grateful to the Kovler Family Foundation for their support of Lincoln Park Zoo over the last 40 years,” stated Kevin Bell, L.P.Z. President & C.E.O, in a press release.[3] Mr. Bell told the Chicago Tribune’s Steve Johnson, “Now we put in all our gift agreements a time limit on naming.”[4]
In 1997, the outdoor lion and tiger habitats underwent renovations. After renovations undertaken in 2007, the 32,700-square-foot Kovler Lion House was home to Afghan leopards, Asiatic lions, Amur tigers, Pallas’ Cats, pumas, red pandas (not to be confused with giant pandas), and servals.
Born at a South African game reserve, Adelor the lion came to the Lincoln Park Zoo in 1995 as a lion cub and died in 2012 at the age of eighteen.[5] In his prime, he weighed over 400 pounds.[6] The Tribune’s William Mullen described him as “a charismatic leader and father of five, popular with his lioness mates, his keepers and the public.”[7] His death meant that fifteen-year-old Myra the lioness was the last remaining African lion at Lincoln Park Zoo.[8]
Adelor was so popular that Zina L. Berman sponsored a bronze sculpture of him to memorialize him. In 2013, husband-and-wife sculptors Jeffrey L. Varilla and Anna Koh Varilla created the life-sized sculpture of the African lion, which sits on a stone base designed to look like an outcropping.
On Thursday, June 16, 2016, the Lincoln Park Zoo was able to announce it had raised $87,000,000 of the fundraising goal of $125,000,000 for the “The Pride Chicago Campaign;” that the 11,500-square-foot Walter Family Arctic Tundra habitat would open in the fall; that the Kovler Lion House would undergo renovations and in the future would be home exclusively to lions rather than lions and tigers; that the tigers Mollie and Paval would leave for another zoo; that the Robert and Mayari Pritzker Penguin Cove would be renovated; and black-footed South African penguins would come to live at the zoo.[9] “Tigers are difficult to display as a group. They’re asocial,” Lincoln Park Zoo President and C.E.O. Keven Bell explained.[10]
The forthcoming $40,000,000 renovation of the Lion House is the final phase of “The Pride of Chicago,” a capital campaign (now with a goal of $135,000,000) that started in 2012. Three years ago, the Mr. Johnson reported that in an interview Bell had revealed the Kovler Lion House would undergo $30,000,000 in renovations, a Welcome Center would be built at a cost of $9,000,000 at the East Gate, and the Amur tigers would leave the Kovler Lion House to live at other zoos.[11]
“This renovation requires more care and investment than other capital projects because the building is designated a historical landmark,” stated Bell. “When it’s complete, we’ll have a new world-class habitat for a pride of lions, and welcome the majestic species back to Chicago as soon as possible.”
Past projects undertaken thanks to “The Pride of Chicago” capital campaign include the Lionel Train Adventure (2014), the Regenstein Macaque Forest (2015), the Robert and Mayari Pritzker Penguin Cove (2016), the Walter Family Arctic Tundra (2016), the Hurvis Family Learning Center (2017), and the Searle Visitor Center (2018), as well as renovations of the Kovler Seal Pool, the Main Mall, the East Gate, and the West Gate.
“Design of the new lion habitat is informed by data collected over the last several years on lion behavior, space use, and preference,” the L.P.Z. stated.
“In essence, the lions themselves helped design their new habitat,” stated Maureen Leahy, L.P.Z. Vice President of Animal Care & Horticulture. “Our welfare scientists used ZooMonitor to collect data to help design and build a scientifically-informed habitat with animal care and welfare at the forefront.”
Steve Johnson relayed a message from Ms. Leahy that the Pepper Family Wildlife Center will triple the usable space the lions currently have with the Kovler Lion House. [12] He wrote that it will also “almost double the holding area space.”[13] This holding space is to accommodate breeding.[14]
Senior Welfare Scientist Katie Cronin, Ph.D., stated, “They told us through the behavior what they liked and where they chose to spend their time, then we worked with the architects to create a space that reflects those preferences in design elements such as vertical complexity, shade coverage, and enrichment opportunities.”
A lion habitat that simulates the savannah will span the whole northern side of the building. The L.P.Z. stated it “will include intricate rockwork to increase vertical complexity and environmental choices for the lions.” Heating and cooling elements will be embedded to provide a climate-controlled lion habitat. Ms. Leahy explained to Steve Johnson that African lions prefer to stay in the shade when the temperature climbs above 80°F. [15]
Forest Stewardship Council-certified trees will be used to make tree structures and deadfall. A food zip line that simulates the experience of taking down prey animals will be installed. The Lincoln Park Zoo described this as an “enrichment opportunity” in addition to the practical matter of being a safe way to convey food to the lions.
The L.P.Z. stated, “Guests will have immersive, nose-to-nose viewing opportunities from both inside and outside Pepper Family Wildlife Center. A unique indoor design element, generously funded by the Women’s Board of Lincoln Park Zoo, will also enable guests to view the exhibit from the center of the habitat.” A “demonstration training wall” will enable guests to view the lions partake in healthcare.
Ms. Leahy stated, “With the training wall open to the lions’ indoor area, we’ll be able to open up behind-the-scenes care and husbandry into a space where the public can view it. It’s important to us to be as transparent as possible with how we care for these beautiful animals.”
Steve Johnson reported on Thursday, December 12, 2019 that the $15,000,000 gift from the Peppers put the $40,000,000 capital campaign to renovate the Kovler Lion House over the 90% threshold the L.B.Z. Board of Trustees requires before construction can begin. [16] He quoted Bell as saying, “This leads into what will become the public part, the finish-up where we sell bricks or paw prints or something to get the last remaining dollars.”[17] Johnson noted the renovation is expected to take eighteen-to-twenty-two months.[18]
Johnson also related that the Lincoln Park Zoological Society had renewed its agreement with the Chicago Park District – which owns the land and buildings – this spring to operate the Lincoln Park Zoo through 2049. [19] The current contract would have expired in five years.[20] Bell explained then that the Lincoln Park Zoological Society sought to negotiate a renewal of the contract to demonstrate enduring stability to potential donors.[21]
Further, Johnson explicated, the Lincoln Park Zoo receives an annual subsidy of $5,600,000 from the Chicago Park District, which accounts for 19% of its budget. [22] The Lincoln Park Zoo, which is one of the last free zoos in America and also one of the largest free zoos, has approximately 3,400,000 visitors annually, making it the most popular attraction amongst the city’s museums and parks.[23]
The lions that formerly resided in the Kovler Lion House until it closed earlier this year were disbursed between other zoos and will not return to Lincoln Park Zoo. [24] New African lions will be brought in.[25]
The lion Sahar and lioness sisters Zalika and Kamali moved to the Rolling Hills Zoo in Salina, Kansas. Born at the Bronx Zoo on January 27, 2010, Sahar moved to the Lincoln Park Zoo in February of 2012.[26] Zalika and Kamili were born at the Oregon Zoo and at eighteen-months-old arrived at the Lincoln Park Zoo in 2015 under the African Lion Species Survival Plan in order to be introduced to five-year-old Sahar.[27] Prior to their arrival, Sahar was alone because the last lioness as Lincoln Park Zoo, Myra, had been euthanized at the age of eighteen in November of 2015.[28] Sahar, Zalika, and Kamali formed a three-cat lion pride, which arrived at the Rolling Hills Zoo on June 5, 2019. In late September, Sahar died unexpectedly at nine years of age.[29]
On September 27, 2019, the Rolling Hills Zoo stated on Facebook, “It is with heavy hearts that Rolling Hills Zoo and its staff announce the passing of Sahar, a 9 year old male African lion, during the night. Yesterday, the animal care staff noticed a difference in Sahar’s behavior and a physical exam was conducted to see what might be the cause. Nothing abnormal was found and he seemed to be a little better after the exam.”
After the Rolling Hills Zoo announced Sahar’s death, the Lincoln Park Zoo offered condolences. Steve Johnson later noted a necropsy performed at Kansas State University revealed Sahar had died “from encephalitis (brain inflammation) due to a fungal infection, Rolling Hills announced in mid-October.”[30]
Credit: Lincoln Park Zoo Caption: This video, posted on YouTube on May 13, 2015, shows sisters Zalika and Kamali in the outdoor lion habitat that extended out from the Kovler Lion House.
Richard and Roxelyn Pepper are in their late eighties. [31] They have also donated $100,000 to start a lion conservation fund.[32]
Northwestern University’s School of Communication has a department named after them, too, the Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Through it, one can join undergraduate, professional, and doctorial research programs that study human hearing, speech, language, and learning, as well as swallowing. The department also seeks to find ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat communication disorders. Richard and Roxelyn Pepper are Northwestern alumni and donated $5,000,000 in 2005. They both graduated in 1953, he with a degree in civil engineering, she with a degree in communication sciences and disorders. She is the daughter of James Roscoe Miller (1905-1977), who was President of Northwestern University from 1949 to 1970.
Richard Pepper was formerly Chairman and President of Pepper Construction, and retains a hand in its management, Johnson explained. Pepper Construction previously won the bid to renovate the Kovler Lion House, thanks to having placed the lowest bid. Bell pointed out the company had a history with Lincoln Park Zoo. Johnson wrote, “Past Pepper projects there include the Regenstein Macaque Forest, Robert & Mayari Pritzker Penguin Cove and Walter Family Arctic Tundra, all from the Pride of Chicago campaign; the Nature Boardwalk and Regenstein Center for African Apes; and the Flamingo and Lion House south habitats, according to a zoo spokeswoman.”
A Brief History of the Pepper Construction Company
In 1920, Arthur Pepper joined the staff of Marshall Field & Company, which was a wholesale company as well as a department store, as a superintendent in the carpentry workshop. His third son, Stanley F. Pepper, Richard Pepper’s father, joined him at Marshall Field & Company. Stanley Pepper founded the Pepper Construction Company in 1927.
The company managed to survive the Second Great Depression (1929-1941), which is quite a feat because many construction projects came to a halt. One of the reasons why Pepper Construction survived is because Pepper received a lucrative contract from Marshall Field & Company to manage the move into the Merchandise Mart, which was meant to house Marshall Field & Company’s wholesale division. [The Merchandise Mart was the largest building on Earth until the construction of the Pentagon, and the Pentagon is arguably a group of buildings.] Marshall Field & Company remained a client of Pepper’s for seventy-five years until it was purchased by Federated Department Stores (which changed its name to Macy’s) and Macy’s remains a client. Another reason Pepper Construction survived the Great Depression is because in 1937 Pepper received a contract from real estate developer Arthur T. McIntosh, Senior to build homes. These ranged from modest dwellings to residences in affluent Inverness, Illinois, which began as an unincorporated subdivision south of Barrington, Illinois and incorporated in 1962.
In 1942, Arthur McIntosh and Stanley Pepper opened the Palatine National Bank. [Palatine, Illinois is another northwestern suburb.] The Kroch’s & Brentano’s bookstore chain was a long-term client. In the 1950s, Pepper Construction was ready to hire soldiers returning from the Second Great World War to work on the housing boom (to accommodate the Baby Boom) and branched out into the construction of gas stations.
Richard Pepper joined Pepper Construction in 1953, having earned a degree in civil engineering from Northwestern University. In 1957, Stanley Pepper died of a heart attack at the age of fifty-three – it was not unusual for men to die in middle-age back then – and twenty-three days later Richard Pepper, who was just twenty-seven years old, assumed the presidency of the company his father founded. The next year, Pepper Construction received the contract to build the headquarters of Illinois Bell (one of the so-called “Baby Bells”), which evolved into Ameritech. Later, Pepper Construction would receive the contract to build the corporate headquarters of Ameritech. Similarly, Pepper Construction received a contract in the 1950s to renovate the Palmer House hotel, and would do so again at the turn of the century.
In 1960, Pepper Construction moved to 643 North Orleans Street in Chicago, which remains the address of its headquarters. Originally, it occupied a former coffee warehouse, but this was replaced in the 1980s by an eight-story, P-shaped 55,000-square-foot building designed by the world-famous architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (S.O.M.). In the 1960s, Pepper Construction also used thirty-ton concrete slabs to build a new warehouse for the California Packing Company in Rochelle, Illinois.
Pepper Construction’s relationship with Northwestern University began in 1963. In that decade, Pepper built the Vogelback Computing Center (1965), the Lindheimer Astronomical Research Center (1966), and the Norris Library (1969). J. Stanely Pepper became the first member of the third generation of Peppers to join the Pepper Construction payroll at the age of fifteen.
In the 1970s, Pepper Construction began to build shopping malls, including Jefferson Square Mall, North Riverside Plaza, White Oaks Mall, and Lincoln Mall. Pepper completed construction of the Pick-Staiger concert hall on the Northwestern University campus in Evanston in 1975. Two years later, Pepper celebrated the Golden Anniversary of its foundation and could point to major clients that included Allstate.
In 1979, Pepper received the contract to build the outdoor altar where Pope John Paul II (lived 1920-2005, reigned 1978-2005) celebrated Mass. Over 1,000,000 people gathered to see the Holy Father celebrate Mass in Grant Park. Back then, the Archdiocese of Chicago was the largest diocese in the U.S.A. and Chicago had the largest Polish population outside Poland.
Two years later, Pepper built Prudential Life Insurance Company of America’s Woodfield Corporate Center in northwest suburban Schaumburg, Illinois. In 1982, Pepper built the Canada and United Kingdom Pavilions at Epcot Center in Disney World down in Florida. Two years later, Pepper renovated the Conrad Hilton Hotel at 720 South Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago in a $150,000,000 project. This was the world’s largest hotel when it opened in 1927. After the renovations, it was renamed the Chicago Hilton and Towers. It can be seen at the climax of The Fugitive (1993).
In the same era, also on Michigan Avenue, Pepper renovated the 380,000-square-foot Chicago Railway Exchange Building at 224 South Michigan Avenue for the Santa Fe Railway. In the Chicago Loop, Pepper built a sixteen-story addition for the Federal Reserve Building (1914) and undertook renovations of the original building. By 1985, Pepper had built eleven of the fifteen buildings on Northwestern University’s seventy-four acre J. Roscoe Miller Campus, which was built on lakefill that extended the campus in north suburban Evanston, Illinois 1,000 eastward at the expense of Lake Michigan.
Pepper began its relationship with DuPage Central Hospital in 1988. It covered 1,500,000 square feet of work. This was the first hospital complex/healthcare campus Pepper built.
On April 13, 1992, when the Chicago Loop experienced an underground flood because water from the Chicago River water began to flow freely into old Chicago Tunnel Company freight train tunnels after repair work at the Kinzie Street Bridge, the basements of Marshall Field & Company on State Street completely filled with water. To make the flagship department store operational again within two-and-a-half days, Pepper brought in ComEd vaults and generator trucks. The efforts to clean-up and renovate the basements lasted multiple weeks and entailed scuba divers and hazmat conditions.
That same year, Pepper completed the headquarters of Speigel Catalog in southwest suburban Downers Grove, Illinois and Kraft in north suburban Northbrook, Illinois. Pepper also began its relationship with The Art Institute of Chicago.
In 1994, Pepper moved the Boeing 727 inside the Museum of Science and Industry. That same decade, Pepper built the Oceanarium at the John G. Shedd Aquarium and built an addition for the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum.
Pepper Environmental Technologies formed in the 1990s. That decade, Pepper built the first LEED® Platinum building in Illinois, the Evelyn Pease Tyner Interpretive Center, at the former Naval Air Station Glenview, which closed in 1995, in northwest suburban Glenview, Illinois.
Pepper Construction of Indiana incorporated in 1995 and opened its first office. It moved to its current location on 15th Street in Indianapolis the next year. Major construction projects undertaken by Pepper Indiana have included the Indiana University Health North Medical Center and Purdue University Birck Nanotechnology Center.
In 2010, Pepper managed the construction of the Sidney & Louis Eskenazi Hospital and Health Campus in Indianapolis. This was America’s first LEED® Gold certified healthcare campus. Its Sky Farm provides fresh produce.
In or around 2000, Pepper Construction Group formed as a parent company for the various operating companies that were already in operation or were soon to come into being. Pepper opened two offices in Ohio in 2007 in Columbus and Cincinnati. In Iowa, Pepper built The Figge to accommodate the expanding collections of the Davenport Museum of Art. It features what Pepper described as a “dual wall of fritted glass.” Pepper also built the Grand Rapids Art Museum, which, in 2007, became the first building in the world to receive LEED® Gold certification.
Pepper finished construction at Grainger headquarters in 2014 of America’s first LEED® v4 Gold data center. That same year, Pepper began to renovate Wrigley Field, which Thomas Ricketts and his three siblings had acquired (along with the Chicago Cubs) from the Tribune Company in 2009.[33] The project included upgrades to the structure, improved facilities for the baseball players, new amenities for fans, and installation of outfield signs. The forty-two-story MILA apartment building that stands at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Lake Street is the first high-rise residential building Pepper has erected in downtown Chicago.
Today, Richard and Roxelyn Pepper’s son, James Stanley (“Stan”) Pepper, is the Chairman and C.E.O. of The Pepper Companies. At the age of thirty-two, he had become President of the Pepper Construction Company. His brother, James David (“Dave”) Pepper, is Chairman of the Pepper Construction Companies. Their brother, James Scot Pepper, is President of the Pepper Construction Group.[34]
The Lincoln Park Zoo is located in the middle of the Chicago Park District’s vast Lincoln Park on the lakeshore of Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago. Lincoln Park Zoo is free and open 365 days a year. Founded in 1868, the Lincoln Park Zoo celebrated its 150th anniversary last year. Approximately 200 animal species are represented at the zoo. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums. The address is 2001 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60614. The phone number is (312) 742-2000.
ENDNOTES
[1] Mark Rosenthal, Carol Tauber, and Edward Uhlir: The Ark in the Park: The Story of Lincoln Park Zoo. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press (2003), p. 117
[2] Rosenthal, p. 117
[3] Kevin Bell has been President & C.E.O. of the Lincoln Park Zoo since 1993, having joined the staff as Curator of Birds in 1976.
[4] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[5] William Mullen, “Adelor, Lincoln Park loud-and-proud lion king, dies at 18,” Chicago Tribune, 2 February 2012 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2012-02-02-ct-met-zoo-lion-euthanized-20120202-story.html) Accessed 01/07/20
[6] Ibid
[7] Ibid
[8] Ibid
[9] Mina Bloom, “See Lincoln Park Zoo’s Huge New Polar Bear Habitat, Opening This Fall,” DNAinfo | Chicago, 22 July, 2016 (https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160616/lincoln-park/see-lincoln-park-zoos-huge-new-polar-bear-habitat-opening-this-fall) Accessed 12/29/17
[10] Mina Bloom, “See Lincoln Park Zoo’s Huge New Polar Bear Habitat, Opening This Fall,” DNAinfo | Chicago, 22 July, 2016
[11] Steve Johnson, “Lincoln Park Zoo’s Lion House to get makeover, shed tigers,” Chicago Tribune, 16 June, 2016 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-lion-house-ent-0616-20160614-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[12] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[13] Ibid
[14] Ibid
[15] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[16] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[17] Ibid
[18] Ibid
[19] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[20] Ibid
[21] Ibid
[22] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[23] Ibid
[24] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[25] Ibid
[26] Kelly Bauer, “Sahar, Lincoln Park Zoo’s Only Male Lion, Dies While Living In Kansas,” 30 September, 2019 Block Club Chicago (https://blockclubchicago.org/2019/09/30/sahar-lincoln-park-zoos-only-male-lion-dies-while-temporarily-living-in-kansas-city/) Accessed 01/07/20
[27] Linze Rice, “Lioness Sisters Join Lincoln Park Cat House,” 13 May, 2015 DNAinfo | Chicago (https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20150513/lincoln-park/lioness-sisters-join-lincoln-park-cat-house/) Accessed 01/07/20
See also Jordan Owen, “Two new lionesses on exhibit at Lincoln Park Zoo,” Chicago Sun-Times, 13 May, 2015 (https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2015/5/13/18586035/two-new-lionesses-on-exhibit-at-lincoln-park-zoo) Accessed 01/07/20
See also Steve Johnson, “New Pair of lionesses at Lincoln Park Zoo,” Chicago Tribune, 14 May, 2015 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lioness-lincoln-park-zoo-column.html) Accessed 01/07/20
[28] Jordan Owen, “Two new lionesses on exhibit at Lincoln Park Zoo,” Chicago Sun-Times, 13 May, 2015 (https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2015/5/13/18586035/two-new-lionesses-on-exhibit-at-lincoln-park-zoo) Accessed 01/07/20
[29] Kelly Bauer, “Sahar, Lincoln Park Zoo’s Only Male Lion, Dies While Living In Kansas,” 30 September, 2019 Block Club Chicago (https://blockclubchicago.org/2019/09/30/sahar-lincoln-park-zoos-only-male-lion-dies-while-temporarily-living-in-kansas-city/) Accessed 01/07/20
See also Steve Johnson, “Lincoln Park Zoo’s former male lion dies suddenly at Kansas zoo,” Chicago Tribune, 1 October, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-lincoln-park-zoo-male-lion-dies-kansas-1002-20191001-4d4jppddzfc4had5olg2g7zs5m-story.html) Accessed 01/07/20
[30] Steve Johnson, “Brookfield Zoo male lion Zenda dies at 14 of age-related issues,” Chicago Tribune, 3 January, 2020 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-ent-brookfield-zoo-lion-zenda-dead-0104-20200103-um2dxhk3wrh2vexzacrwucohnm-story.html) Accessed 01/07/20
[31] Steve Johnson, “Outdated Lincoln Park Zoo lion house to be modernized and renamed after $15 million donation,” Chicago Tribune, 12 December, 2019 (https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/museums/ct-lincoln-park-zoo-pepper-donation-lion-house-renovation-1212-20191212-rferblztirc2xgn2bgwkqu5qrq-story.html) Accessed 12/27/19
[32] Ibid
[33] At the time, the Tribune Company was the publisher of the Chicago Tribune (and other newspapers) and the owner of regional super station W.G.N., but in 2014 the Tribune Company spun-off the publishing division as the Tribune Publishing Company. The Tribune Company had earlier acquired the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field from the Wrigley family in 1981.
[34] Please note the convention in the Pepper family is to give all the boys the same first or Christian name, “James,” abbreviate it as J., and, on formal occasions, to emphasize the middle name, while, on informal occasions, they use the middle name without reference to the first name.
Help Keep the Lights On
If you like this content, you can help keep more if it coming with a one-time donation.
$1.00
In the Garden City 
1 thought on ““Thanks to $15M Donation, Lincoln Park Zoo to Remodel Lion House,” by S.M. O’Connor”