SIOUX FALLS, SD (KELO.com) — Sparks are flying over the Delbridge Museum of Natural History at the Great Plains Zoo. Sioux Falls Mayor Paul Tenhaken led a news conference this morning, reacting to criticism over a decision to decommission the display. City Councilor Greg Neitzert has been the most vocal of those opposed to that move. The Mayor says it was the only move the city could make.
City Councilor Greg Neitzert wants to put the brakes on the decommissioning. He says the safety concerns are overblown.
The Mayor says the fact that the collection contains arsenic – a known carcinogen – led to the sudden closing of the specimens to protect the city from legal threats.
City councilors will be briefed next week. Their approval is needed to decommission the collection.