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Riverbanks Zoo’s new Aquarium and Reptile Conservation Center attracts 100,000 visitors in less than a month, according to C-WC Chamber Breakfast speaker, Monique Jacobs

Riverbanks Zoo and Garden has an annual  economic impact of almost $150 million on the local economy. The zoo employs 1,840.

That was some of the information imparted by Monique Jacobs VP of Advancement for Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens. She was the speaker Tuesday at the Greater Cayce-West Columbia Chamber of Commerce Breakfast, held at Stone River in West Columbia. 

Cayce-West Columbia Chamber Breakfast

Jacobs also told the packed room that the zoo draws visitors from Charlotte, Augusta, Greenville and the Lowcountry. She said The Boyd Foundation Aquarium & Reptile Conservation Center, that opened March 2, has already drawn 100,000 people, with 12,000 visiting in one day on a couple of occasions. 

The new reptile center features alligator snapping turtles, a king cobra, tree frogs and rattlesnakes. The Aquarium is awaiting the arrival of Susan, an octopus. It currently houses sharks, sea turtles and endangered species. There is also a coral lab.

Upgrades planned for the zoo include: a restaurant overlooking the Saluda River, with orangutans on the other side; a South Carolina nature and history trail; and a skyway gondola. 

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