DALLAS — In less than a month, the Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park will reopen its doors after shutting down during the pandemic, shocking those who held the historic venue near to their hearts. But with the help of the ZoOceanarium Group, guests will be able to reunite with some of their underwater friends.

“I’ve been really humbled by how much emotion is involved from the community about that tiny little aquarium,” said ZoOceanarium Group managing director Chris Davis. “I’ve heard grandmothers say it was the first aquarium they went to and they brought their kids and then they were bringing their grandchildren and they’re excited to bring their grandchildren back.”

Last year, Spectrum News reported on The Children’s Aquarium closure, which resulted from the shutdown prompted by the pandemic. As the first aquarium in Texas, it opened in June 1936. But under The Dallas Zoo’s management, the aquarium closed on March 13.

“I can’t speak for The Dallas Zoo, but I do know all zoos across the country were quite financially stressed during that period and certainly The Children’s Aquarium was one of those facilities that they weren’t able to reopen,” said Davis. “It was costing the zoo money. So, I believe they just felt it was in their best interest to not operate that any longer and really look more inward towards The Dallas Zoo.”

In a previous interview, Gregg Hudson told Spectrum News 1 that about 135,000 guests visited the aquarium annually. Still, with the shutdown due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus, which to date has claimed the lives of at least 500,000, the operation couldn’t continue.

“I saw an article and at the end of that article it mentioned they were indeed closing and councilman Bazaldua… said ‘what we’d really like is for a private company to step in and take over’,” said Davis. “So, I connected the dots and said, ‘hey, we’re a private company that operates aquariums and this is something that we would love to do’.”

On July 15, Dallas City Council approved the management of the aquarium — previously managed by The Dallas Zoo — to the ZoOceanarium Group. Last year, the State Fair of Texas did not take place due to safety precautions tied to the pandemic. However, this year, the fair is gearing up for its return on Sept. 24, the same day the Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park will be open for business.

“We would’ve loved to open a lot sooner, but it’s a process,” said Davis. “About half of the animals had been sent to other facilities. It was a skeleton staff that was taking care of it for the past year and a half.”

The St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station, also owned and operated by the ZoOceanarium Group, was one of many places that received animals from the Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park following the announcement that it was shuttering its doors.

“We are bringing in some of the same animals,” Davis said. “But, more than that, we’re bringing in a lot of animals that to my knowledge haven’t been at the aquarium before. So, there’s going to be some new types of animals and more than that, there’s going to be new experiences.”

Davis says guests should expect the unexpected when they come back to the aquarium.

“The ZoOceanarium Group is really big about hands wet the entire time,” he said. “We want your hands wet from the moment you walk in to the aquarium until you walk out — touching things, getting your hands wet, interacting with staff in some one-on-one type stuff. So, a really personable experience.”

According to Davis, Fair Park First has already started the planning process to host events throughout the year that will attract guests to the area.

“The State Fair has been the main driver for all business in Fair Park,” he said. “In working with our partners over at Fair Park First, their vision is to have activations all-year-round. Now, clearly the State Fair of Texas is the largest of those activations. But what we really like is that instead of it being a three or four-week activation period, we’re looking at different things that are happening throughout the year that will drive people onto the campus…”

Davis admits that he has worries, but that they pale in comparison to the excitement he has about what’s to come for The Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park.

“With the pandemic and the unknowns, I don’t know any business owners that I’ve spoken to over the past year and a half that didn’t have some sort of deep-seated worry about what the future looks like,” he said. “But, more than that, I’m very confident. I’m extremely confident in the product that we’re going to be offering is unlike anything in Dallas. It’s going to be unique.”

Davis adds that the ZoOceanarium Group is excited to expand into the Dallas market and make an impact.

“We’ve got a really, really cool facility that has 85 years of history to it,” he said. “We’ve been installed to basically write the future of it and I can’t think of anything more exciting for a company like ours to be in the middle of than that project.”

With the support of the community again, Davis believes the Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park will be restored to its heyday.

“No business in Dallas is going to make it without the community’s support and we are absolutely going to rely on the community for supporting the aquarium,” he said. “We’ll do everything we can to hold up our end of the bargain and make sure that it is a really fun experience for kids, for adults and children of all ages.”