Lease Option

First ... one point worth clarifying ...
This proposal is not the same one that was presented to the RDC several years ago ...
That was a different group with a different idea.
This proposal recommends that Riverhead keep the land and one option to generate revenue is to lease it.
The following is just one idea ...

Lease the land for this proposal (300 acres) for $600,000/year, or $50,000/month.

A good zoo realizes over 50% local attendance.
Local attendance takes into account a 50 mile radius.
That would cover nearly all of Suffolk and Nassau county, which has a population of 2.78 million.
If we were to conservatively estimate attendance at 36%, that would mean 1 million visitors per year.
(Don't panic ... much of that will be school trips between Sep-Jun, 10am-2pm)

Furthermore, if we estimate a conservative admission fee or donation of $6, the revenue at the gate would yield $6 million.

If the lease agreement were 10% of the gate, Riverhead would collect $600,000/year, or $50,000/month.