FULL STORY: https://www.10tv.com/article/news/local/liberty-township-admission-surcharge-offset-emergency-costs-at-zoo/530-e2a65aea-ce09-4351-913e-b2c937258da2 Visitors to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium will soon pay more for admission after Liberty Township officials approved a proposed surcharge at a township meeting Tuesday night. The “protect and serve” fee will be added to admission tickets to help offset the cost of emergency services provided by the township’s fire department. Because the zoo is a nonprofit and does not pay property taxes, township officials say they need another funding source to cover increasing expenses. Those with yearly memberships will be charged $1 per family member, once per year. Liberty Township Fire responds to all 911 calls from the zoo and surrounding attractions. Township Fiscal Officer Rick Karr said the number of calls has placed a growing burden on emergency services. “I think over 80 calls last year and just this week on Sunday, we had seven calls — simultaneous EMS calls to the zoo, five of which came in a two-hour and 45-minute time frame,” Karr said. According to township records, the fire department responded to 87 calls at the zoo in 2023. Each call cost the township $3,415.39, totaling nearly $300,000 for the year. Much of the township’s fire and EMS funding comes from property taxes — a tax the zoo does not pay. “I think being a nonprofit, it’s understandable that they have an educational mission,” said Township Trustee Scott Donaldson. “But we feel that they are a qualified event venue and obviously a tremendous draw to the area. But somebody’s left holding the bag — and right now it’s our taxpayers.” In April, state lawmakers passed House Bill 315, which allows municipalities to charge up to $1 per admission ticket for public safety costs. Though it was initially intended for large entertainment venues, Liberty Township believes it applies to the zoo as well. Karr said the nature of zoo emergencies can also be unique and costly. “So the zoo runs range from a wide variety of EMS runs. There have been, you know, exotic snake bites that our team has had to run and care for that patient and transport that patient,” he said. "Which then says for our fire department and EMS, they have to be trained in exotic snake bites, which is not a typical training for township fire departments. That takes almost 60 paramedics and firefighters out of service in rotation to get that training, and that’s an inherent lost cost.” Karr said the township has previously tried to reach a cost-sharing agreement with zoo officials, but so far, no deal has been made. The three Liberty Township board members voted to pass the charge unanimously. The $1 charge will go into effect in 60 days. “The Columbus Zoo is the only zoo in Ohio located in a township. All other zoos are located in cities where the employees pay city municipal payroll tax, which essentially offsets some of the cost to fire [and] EMS support for those particular zoos,” Karr said. “In the case of Liberty Township, we receive no funding from the zoo related to payroll tax or any other types of taxes that would be relevant to the zoo operation.” Liberty Township officials say the surcharge is a fair way to share the cost of services with the more than 2 million annual visitors to the Columbus Zoo and Zoombezi Bay.