San Francisco has hosted pandas before, but never for a long term. In the ’80s, two pandas stopped by the San Francisco Zoo for three months, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors. That period remains the busiest period the zoo has ever experienced.
Dozens of Chinese American elected officials, city commissioners and community leaders signed Breed’s second letter, including City Administrator Carmen Chu and City Attorney David Chiu.
Tanya Peterson, president of San Francisco Zoo, told The Standard that she’s in close contact with the Chinese forestry administration, as experts from both countries are sorting out the zoological operations for the potential arrival of giant pandas. Panda experts from China came to San Francisco to evaluate the zoo facility last December, according to Breed.
China is reviving its famous “panda diplomacy” policy, through which it has lent pandas to foreign zoos over the past several decades.
If the pandas are confirmed to come, the city may start a massive fundraising effort to cover the rental fees and build a suitable habitat. That effect is expected to cost tens of millions of dollars.
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