Zoo Atlanta's new $22 million veterinary center

Zoo Atlanta is building a $22 million new veterinary care center, which is expected to open next summer.

Why it matters: The new Rollins Animal Health Center broke ground last week.

• It will allow the Zoo to provide daily care for its more than 200 species of animals, and to "fully inhabit its growing reputation for excellence in veterinary care," zoo President and CEO Raymond King said in a press release.

State of play:  The new center will improve existing veterinary facilities, "which in recent years have been significantly outstripped and outclassed" by its veterinary team and program, the release said.

• It will also expand the zoo's ability to perform research and work with universities around the region and the state.

Zoom in: The new center will contain a laboratory and radiology, pharmacy, treatment and surgical centers.

• It will have a kitchen, indoor and outdoor animal holding dens, a necropsy area, five quarantine dens with their own care team members and kitchen; and office space for the zoo’s veterinary team.
• It will also have dorm rooms and working space if team members need to stay overnight or host out-of-town colleagues.

By the numbers: Zoo Atlanta has just under 1,000 animals in its care, said Rachel Davis, director of communications.

• The zoo averages more than 900,000 visits at its Grant Park location annually, Davis said.
• So far this year, it's recorded 575,390.

Of note: The zoo has already raised nearly all of the $22 million needed for the project, much of it from local charity organizations, including the Rollins, Blank and Marcus foundations.