Many weeks ago, in early February, I attended the open presentation held by Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, in which four speakers explained the Trust’s drastic long-term plans for their Jersey headquarters. In this, my second post, I would like to present my personal opinions about the redesign but also raise just one minor disagreement.
I arrived at the Princess Royal Pavilion shortly before the presentation was scheduled to start and was very warmly greeted by friendly staff and offered a complimentary drink. Lee Durrell was circulating the small crowd, and greeting and engaging in polite conversation. Altogether I felt very welcome and at ease, despite my scruffy appearance.
After viewing the wall-mounted plan diagrams we took to our seats and the talk commenced, at least shortly after the first expert recovered from hitting his head on the stereo speaker. I won’t go into the details of the plan here, but you can get a rough idea from browsing the Durrell Wildlife website.
But to summarise the one-and-a-half hour presentation, the Trust needs to generate £47,000,000 in order to expand into surrounding land and pretty-much knock everything down and start again. This will include a large Eden-project-style ‘bubble dome’ in which a microclimate will be established, along with many other structures which will hopefully be better-suited to the animals’ needs. The new gorilla enclosure will also feature a large (hopefully reinforced!) glass wall, whereby visitors can get close to the gorillas in their outside environment. However, and rather reassuringly, the gorillas will have the choice as to whether they venture out to the glass wall, and so they will retain at least a little privacy.
As I said, I will not go into the details of the plan; however it is enough to say that in my opinion this is a very worthwhile cause. Although £47,000,000 sounds like a lot of money, the returns on this investment are potentially much larger.
Firstly, this new vision will help the Trust further enhance and advance their present and future conservation campaigns, which you simply cannot put a price on. Secondly, and more relevant to Jersey, the completed revamp will pull in a vast number of overseas tourists which, considering the potential future of the island’s economy, can only serve to help the common person of Jersey. I was pleased to hear at the presentation that the Trust has focussed heavily into generating more tourists through many new ideas, such as building ‘eco-lodges’ inside the complex where paying tourists can stay overnight.
But this is where my abovementioned disagreement lies.
In my opinion these so-called ‘eco-lodges’ are awful. When I first heard the word ‘eco-lodge’ at the presentation my mind conjured up images of a rustic little cottage-like building possibly with a small wind turbine or a solar panel mounted on the roof.
Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust's plan for the 'eco-lodges'
Image copyright Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust
As you can see from the above image, this does not seem to be the case. All I can see is an ultra-modern floating shoebox mounted on a large door-stop. The question of how these buildings will look amongst the surrounding environment was asked by a member of the audience, and we were all assured by the experts that they would ‘blend in’ with their surroundings through the natural process of weathering.
I am afraid I am not convinced. No amount of weathering is going to change the overall shape or alter the sharp lines and angles. I fear this is a case of taking the ‘modern’ vision a little too far.
However, I should not complain; the grand design of the entire complex is a very exciting prospect. Not only is it innovative, but as I mentioned previously the potential for the economy is fantastic. I don’t think I will ever like the ‘eco-lodges’, but they are only a small component of the overall design – a grand design all in Jersey will one day be extremely proud of.
So if you have ever considered making a small donation to the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, or ever considered purchasing a membership but have always put it off, now is the time to do it. Regard it as an investment in your future life in Jersey, and I am sure it will pay dividend. I know I will be.
- Benjamin Langlois
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