Announcing Our Name Change and New Logo!

With the grand opening of Sobela Ocean Aquarium less than a month away, the Zoo is excited to announce that it has changed its name to the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium to reflect its newest addition opening on September 1. A new logo has also been revealed reflecting the new name.

The new logo includes elements from both the Zoo and Aquarium as the new 650,000-gallon facility will increase the number of animals at the Zoo from 1,700 to nearly 10,000. The new logo retains the familiar font from the old one, a nod to the Zoo’s history, with “& Aquarium” added to it. It also includes additional animals and colors to reflect the diversity of the many species that reside here as ambassadors of their native habitats.

“With the Aquarium adding so many animal residents at the Zoo, it was important for our name and logo to reflect both land and sea residents. The new brandmark does a great job of showing the diversity of species the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium will have to offer while still having a familiar look and feel to our previous logo,” said Sean Putney, executive director and CEO of the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium. “We have a wonderful history dating back to 1909 and we want to continue to build on that while we continue to make the Zoo & Aquarium even better for the Greater Kansas City community.”

Safety and Accessibility at the Aquarium

We want to ensure that Sobela Ocean Aquarium is a place that everyone in our community can enjoy, and a few partners have stepped up to assist in that effort!

VarietyKC provided a generous donation that enabled us to include a universal changing table, which is critical for ensuring that guests with special needs can play all day at the Zoo and know they can be changed with dignity. VarietyKC’s gift also provided accessible viewing windows where guests in wheelchairs will have their own front-and-center view of sharks and sea otters!

A grant awarded by North American Savings Bank (NASB) allowed the Zoo to purchase an automated external defibrillator (AED) to be located in the Aquarium. The size and layout of the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium is quite expansive, so having access to an AED in high-emergency situations in this new facility could be a lifesaving measure.