PORT CANAVERAL – An outdoor aquarium at Port Canaveral is almost three-quarters of the way to being fully funded, Brevard County’s zoo told commissioners Wednesday. The future site of the project sits on 14 acres along the Banana River that was never developed.
The Brevard Zoo is hoping in just another year groundbreaking can begin.
“Building an aquarium is sort of a once-in-a-lifetime experience for almost all of us,” executive director Keith Winsten said.
Two years ago, News 6 reported the commission gave the zoo approval to build the aquarium, and Wednesday, Winsten said fundraising reached $70 million, half of those donations from private citizens.
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“We’re so pleased with how many people in the community have participated to date,” he said.
Winsten told commissioners the zoo is still seeking $30 million to fully fund the aquarium.
In his presentation Wednesday, he said the Ron Jon Surf Shop donated $2 million.
“Everyone here cares about the Indian River Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean and the St. Johns,” Winsten said. “And so they see this as that lighthouse that will keep those assets beautiful and pristine.”
To be located where A1A merges with the 528, renderings of the aquarium show a manatee healing center and a seagrass nursery.
Winsten has said a dollar from every ticket will go towards improving the water quality of the lagoon.
If the groundbreaking stays on schedule for next September, the zoo hopes to open the aquarium to thousands of guests in 2027.
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