After more than 50 years, the Valley Zoo's Storyland section will be no more as the facility undergoes a $51-million facelift.
For decades, familiar cartoon figures such as Humpty Dumpty became an integral part of the facility's heritage.
"We know how important Storyland was when it opened," said Valley Zoo director Denise Prefontaine. "We'll very carefully remove him [Humpty Dumpty] and some of the other characters that remain."
The zoo is now undergoing a pricey upgrade to become a more interactive, up-to-date facility. The castle-style entrance of the zoo will also be removed as the renovation progresses.
The revamped facility will be about one and a half times larger than it is now. And in about a year from now, visitors will be able to take in a new arctic habitat. Plans are also in place to replace the Storyland area with a new children's attraction.
"Things like role playing of a veterinarian of an animal hospital and what a zoo veterinarian does," explained Prefontaine.
But in the meantime, families are saying their final goodbyes to the group of characters they grew to love.
"We had to have pictures with Humpty Dumpty," said Sheilah Tennant who brought her granddaughter to see the fairytale favourites.
With files from Laura Tupper
