FEBRUARY 6th 2001, Langley Advance
Zoo Director leaves
The man who ran the Greater Vancouver Zoo in Aldergrove has moved on.

by Erin McKay
reporter

Ken Macquisten said goodbye on Jan. 1. The veterinarian had become director of the Greater Vancouver Zoo in Aldergrove in January 1998, and he and his purchasing group bought the facility that was once called the Game Farm in June, 1999.

"I'm saddened not to be there, but determined to move on and keep the vision alive," said Macquisten.

Macquisten and his people failed to re-negotiate terms of purchase, and ownership of the zoo reverted to the previous group that bought it in 1991.

"It was an extremely tough decision," he said. "I left behind a lot of dreams and a lot of hard work in turning it around."

However, Macquisten said he felt he was only at "day six of a 1,000 day plan," and that his group's investment would be better off elsewhere. (AAS: did McQuisten's Group invest instead in the Grouse Mountain business?)

"We needed to set a scenario of purchase that made it attractive for new investors and we were not able to," he said.

Macquisten, who lives in Abbotsford, is now the director of the Pacific Rim Endangered Special Centre, which is in the process of finding a location.

In the meantime, Macquisten is leaving Feb. 9 for a nine-day trip to China with Prime Minister Jean Chretien and the provinces premiers, as part of the Team Canada Trade Mission. (AAS: Big business, big politicians, big money to be found in the new animal entertainment business.)

When he returns, he hopes to make a major announcement about his future plans.

Animals at the Greater Vancouver Zoo are now under the care of vets who had helped out in the past.