It's the fifth oldest zoo in America, and remains a community staple 145 years later.

The Ross Park Zoo in Binghamton is often a gathering place for families of all ages.

But as summer approaches, its gates remains closed.

Per CDC guidelines, staff expects to be shut down until at least June 29.

"I would say the best part about my job is seeing the people. So for this pandemic to kind of take that away from everyone here at the zoo has been very hard," said Rachel Peppard, manager of the Member and Visitor Services Center at the zoo. "Usually by now, we welcome school groups, camp groups, families."

The closure is expected to add up to 37 percent to the zoo's 2020 operating budget.

Most of the zoo's past and upcoming fundraising events have also been canceled.

"It's very hard for us to take that loss," Peppard said. "It's months and months of not having people come in and enjoy the park but also pay the ticket sales, concessions, gift shop. We rely on that to feed our animals."

The zoo cares for more than 175 animals.

To make up for the loss in revenue, an emergency fund is raising money.

"Our community has really stepped up through the emergency fund to help us get some money back into the park so we're really thankful for that," said Peppard.

When the zoo finally gets the green light, staff have a safe re-opening plan in place.

All buildings and restrooms will remain closed, and guests must follow social distancing guidelines.

"We have our six foot distancing decals that we will be installing. We also have installed multiple hand sanitizing stations and we are also going to have a linear path around the zoo as well," said Peppard.

The Ross Park Zoo typically opens its gates in April.

Donations can be made at this link.