88/ 100
WarmTier 2Enriched
Turtle Back Zoo
A county-owned, AZA-accredited zoo in West Orange, New Jersey, supported by the separate Zoological Society of New Jersey.
Research snapshot2026-08-2117 cited sources · 5/6 modules complete Open PDF Report
ICP score88/1002026-08-21 · Warm, evidence-gated qualification.
Zoo attendance933,872Calendar 2025 · Owned zoo attendance reported by Essex County and corroborated by two local publications.
Holiday Lights attendance112,1722025 event · Seasonal event audience.
Society program-service revenue$2.92MFY2025 · Separate nonprofit figure; not zoo operating revenue.
Hoof-stock barn construction contract$7.88MAward announced August 2026 · Current county capital commitment.
Official X followers8,2912026-08-21 · Point-in-time public profile count.
Visual evidence profile
What supports the opportunity
Source composition and verified operating momentum at a glance.
Evidence mix17 cited sources
Six-segment module readiness strip
Verified growth trendZoological Society total revenue
Society revenue increased 14.6% from FY2022 to FY2025 but declined 10.2% in the latest year; it is not zoo operating revenue.
Visual intelligence map
Research coverage
Each branch maps directly to a required module in the plugin’s canonical report schema.
Why this lead fits CTM
The zoo combines verified AZA provenance, high annual visitation, seasonal activation, a direct ticket path and current capital investment. The score is held below hot because the county/Society buying route, current customer suppression, budget and exact inventory require human confirmation.
Fit reasons
More than 900,000 annual visits create material visitor volume for an arrival-stage test.
Daily admission, group pricing and an online ticket path provide measurable calls to action.
Seasonal events and a current expansion program create distinct campaign messages.
CTM describes distribution in hotels, visitor centers, airports, attractions and travel corridors relevant to this market.
Risks and unknowns
County ownership and separate nonprofit support create a multi-party approval path.
Society financials cannot be used as a proxy for county zoo operating budget.
Exact CTM inventory, pricing, customer status and attribution access are not established.
Evidence modules
Lead intelligence structure
Each module uses a view tailored to its canonical evidence type—reports, momentum, channels, leaders, roles, or demand.
01Analyzed reportsA zoo-issued animal-program report and a four-year IRS-derived Society filing series provide program and financial context, with strict separation between zoo operations and nonprofit support.Complete
Reported Performance5 verified metrics
Animals represented in Species360 contribution>3,594Current page observed 2026 · Cumulative zoo-reported data contribution.
Taxa represented in Species360 contribution834Current page observed 2026 · Species, subspecies and breeds represented.
Society total revenue$3.29MFY2025 · Separate nonprofit, not county zoo operations.
Society program-service revenue$2.92MFY2025 · Separate nonprofit program-service revenue.
Society net assets$4.70MFY2025 · Separate nonprofit balance-sheet value.
Reviewed Reports2 records
animal programs and conservation report · Fall/Winter 2024ROAR Fall/Winter 2024
A zoo-issued narrative report covering animal wellness, conservation programs and planned facilities.
IRS Form 990 filing series · FY2022-FY2025Zoological Society of New Jersey IRS Form 990 series
IRS-derived financial history for the separate nonprofit that fundraises for Turtle Back Zoo; these values are not county zoo operating accounts.
The report described the Animal Wellness Center as targeted for spring 2025.
The zoo reports a Wildlife Trafficking Alliance Gold Program partnership dating to 2022.
The zoo reports contributing Species360 data on more than 3,594 animals and 834 species, subspecies and breeds.
Additional Evidence8 items
Additional Signals
Continue integrating animal wellness facilities with conservation education and field partnerships.
The publication describes animal programs rather than commercial performance and provides no audited zoo budget.
FY2025 Society revenue was $3.29 million and expenses were $2.96 million, producing $330,861 of net income.
Program-service revenue increased from $2.39 million in FY2022 to $2.92 million in FY2025.
FY2025 net assets were $4.70 million; reported total assets were $6.08 million and liabilities were $1.38 million.
Support the welfare, facilities, equipment and animal program of the county-owned zoo through fundraising and membership.
The filing belongs to the Zoological Society; none of its financial values should be presented as Turtle Back Zoo operating revenue or budget.
Research Boundaries
No audited county zoo operating statement or complete 2025 animal-program report was located.
02Growth signalsGrowth signals are mixed but commercially meaningful: annual attendance remained above 900,000, Society program-service revenue expanded over four years, and a new barn is under construction for spring 2027.Complete
A $7.88 million construction contract for the hoof-stock barn began in July 2026, with completion targeted for spring 2027.
Visible August 2026 social content promoted the Penguin Waddle, BARKtoberfest, Member Morning and the monthly newsletter.
The county release states that more than $100 million has been invested in upgrades since 2003.
Separate near-term event creative from spring-2027 expansion storytelling and test each with distinct calls to action.
Additional Evidence2 items
Additional Signals
Completion timing may move and the relevant marketing budget owner is not public.
Research Boundaries
The public attendance comparison omits 2024 and Society financial growth does not measure zoo operations.
03Social activityThe official X account is active around events, membership and newsletters; five visible posts were sampled. Facebook and Instagram links were verified from the official site but not sampled because the accessible interfaces did not expose dependable public metrics.Partial
Additional Evidence1 items
Research Boundaries
The five-post X sample is directional, not a full-channel audit; Facebook challenged access and Instagram was not sampled.
04C-suite activityCurrent public evidence identifies the zoo director and Society executive director, with fresh 2026 professional activity. No public evidence confirms either as the final marketing budget owner.Complete
Zoo DirectorDr. Jilian Fazio
Frame a measured visitor-acquisition test that supports current event programming without overstating the spring-2027 facility timeline.
Executive Director, Zoological Society of New JerseyPatrick Bieger
Ask whether the Society or county owns visitor-marketing partnerships and whether campaign funding can support a bounded pilot.
Decision PathPublic buying signals
Current August 2026 evidence names Patrick Bieger as Society executive director; the FY2025 filing lists Adam Kerins, so the older filing role is treated as stale for outreach.
Animal welfare, population management, conservation education and operational activation of new facilities.
Likely executive sponsor for zoo-operational alignment; budget authority for visitor media is unverified.
Additional Evidence3 items
Additional Signals
Fundraising and nonprofit support for facilities, equipment, animals and programming at the county zoo.
Plausible initial partnership contact, subject to confirmation of marketing and procurement ownership.
Research Boundaries
Public role evidence does not establish marketing ownership, procurement authority or media budget.
05Hiring activityThe official careers page showed no currently available paid seasonal positions at the research snapshot; the visible 2026 student, docent and VolunTEEN application windows were closed.Complete
0Visible RolesPublic openings connected to this lead
No current opening was verified.
The page emphasizes seasonal education, volunteer and pre-veterinary pipelines rather than a visible current corporate hiring wave.
Additional Evidence1 items
Research Boundaries
Zero means no accepting paid openings visible on the checked official page, not proof of no county hiring elsewhere; refresh before outreach.
06Visitor activityOwned evidence establishes a 933,872-visit zoo audience and a 112,172-visit Holiday Lights peak. State tourism and Newark airport volumes are labeled market proxies only.Complete
Demand & DistributionOwned metrics remain distinct from market proxies
Turtle Back Zoo attendance933,872Calendar 2025 · Owned zoo attendance.
Holiday Lights Spectacular attendance112,1722025 event · Owned seasonal-event attendance.
New Jersey visitors123.7MCalendar 2024 · Statewide visitor-market context; not zoo footfall.
New Jersey visitor spending$50.6BCalendar 2024 · Statewide tourism-spend context; not zoo revenue.
Newark Liberty passengers22.8MFirst half 2026 · Gateway market proxy; not zoo visitor origin.
The zoo operates daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., providing a year-round visitor-planning surface.
Holiday Lights drew 112,172 visitors in 2025, creating a distinct winter event audience.
August social promotions for Penguin Waddle, BARKtoberfest and Member Morning indicate campaignable late-summer and fall programming.
New Jersey and Newark Liberty supply large visitor pools, but the opened public sources do not disclose zoo visitor origin by geography.
Additional Evidence3 items
Additional Signals
Adult admission is $22, senior and child admission is $19, and the official page exposes a direct ticket path plus 15-person group rates.
CTM describes relevant placements across hotels, visitor centers, airports, attractions and travel corridors; exact New Jersey inventory must be confirmed.
Research Boundaries
New Jersey tourism and Newark airport volumes are market proxies only and must never be added to or presented as zoo visits.
A bounded arrival-stage pilot could extend Turtle Back Zoo’s seasonal event and year-round ticket messages into high-intent New Jersey visitor environments, subject to county/Society ownership and current-customer suppression.
Recommended solution
Evaluate a 6-8 week New Jersey brochure or rack-card test, optionally paired with available digital placements, using one year-round zoo message and one time-bound event message.
Pilot hypothesis
If high-intent visitors encounter market-specific zoo creative with distinct ticket and event calls to action, trackable ticket-page sessions and attributable purchases should improve versus a comparable baseline.
Measurement plan
Use separate QR codes and UTMs for year-round admission and the selected seasonal event.
Track placement-level distribution, replenishment, scans, qualified sessions, transactions and revenue where analytics access permits.
Compare equivalent weekday/weekend and event windows and record weather or closure effects before interpreting lift.