The Wildlife Conservation Society announced it will partially reopen Coney Island’s New York Aquarium this spring, after it was shuttered in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Though there’s no word on when exactly the public will get to hang out with him, but the conservation society wants us to know that Mitik, the semi-celebrity baby walrus the aquarium acquired just before the storm hit, is still doing just fine. “Mitik is doing well,” said Jon Forrest Dohlin, the aquarium’s director. “He is hitting all his milestones. He is at about 400 pounds now.”
The cost of rehabbing the facility will near $65 million, officials said, and there’s not yet an exact date for the limited reopening, which will feature the main hall as well as penguins, seals, sea lions, and walrus.
“We know that all efforts to reopen the New York Aquarium are vital to the rebirth of Coney Island,” said Wildlife Conservation Society president Cristian Samper. “This partial reopening will ensure that the aquarium can help all of New York City experience a strong comeback from the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy.”
