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Record of Proceedings

Louisville Zoo Boo at the Zoo and Airport Updates - October 27, 2026

Metro Council & Committees — Tuesday, October 27, 2026
BodyLouisville, Kentucky
SessionMetro Council & Committees
DateTuesday, October 27, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 4:38

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

You can just label what the dog food is.

0:02

We won't let the food go to waste.

0:03

We're gonna give it out to the community to make sure that the pets are being fed.

Speaker 2

0:07

Louisville Mohammed Ali International Airport keeps growing and taking you to new places.

0:12

Coming this May, you can fly nonstop to Gulf Shores Orange Beach, Hartford, and Pittsburgh.

0:19

Getting there is a breeze with Louisville Mohammed Ali International Airport.

0:23

Visit Fly Louisville.com for all the details.

Speaker 3

0:41

An electrical inspection is part of the electrical permit process.

Speaker 4

1:19

Hi, I'm Kyle Shepherd with the Louisville Zoo, and we're here at uh Boo at the Zoo, one of our favorite times of year during Halloween.

1:26

It's our 45th anniversary for Boo at the Zoo presented by Meyer.

1:30

Tonight is Wednesday night.

1:31

We're here with uh a special group from our partner Kozair for Kids.

1:34

I'm gonna bring Stephanie Smith in.

1:36

She's the event manager, event VP at Kozair for Kids.

1:39

What is so special about this particular

Speaker 5

1:41

party?

1:41

We have been lucky enough to partner with the Louisville Zoo for over 20 years for this event.

1:45

We close down the zoo on a Wednesday night, and we allow our kids that we serve to come in and just take the zoo at their own pace.

1:52

It can get really crowded on a normal night, and some of our kiddos need a little extra time, a little less uh sensory overload, and you all make that possible for them.

Speaker 4

2:01

And this is a pretty special year.

2:03

You've been doing this for over 20 years, so obviously there's something special about it.

2:07

Uh and how many guests are we expecting tonight?

Speaker 5

2:09

So we try to limit the guest number.

2:11

We've got 2,500 tickets out tonight, and we expect a pretty big crowd with weather like this.

2:15

It's absolutely gorgeous, and our families look forward to this every single year.

2:19

So this

Speaker 4

2:19

is over 22 22 years, I believe.

2:22

Do you get a lot of feedback from families on how special this party is?

2:24

Oh

Speaker 5

2:25

yeah, they start emailing me in like August to get their tickets and make sure that they're on the list.

2:30

Because a lot of these kiddos can't handle long lines or crowds or you know, they they might be in a wheelchair or have um something that assists them with their walking, and so coming in and taking it slow, it allows them to really experience this time of year and enjoy the zoo.

Speaker 4

2:46

I've heard you guys often refer to it as it's one of those one of those nights where the kids just get to be kids.

Speaker 5

2:50

Exactly.

2:51

It is exactly that.

2:53

Um we offer these tickets to our financial assistance families, and then we also partner with over a hundred organizations across the state of Kentucky.

3:00

So people are coming from as far as bowling green to be here tonight.

3:03

We've got Ask Out in Paducah.

3:05

Um so we're excited that they they want to be a part of this as much as we want them to be here.

Speaker 4

3:10

And we love having you guys here.

3:11

You guys have been great partners for these last 22 years.

3:13

So welcome back and thanks for thanks for uh coming in tonight and and all that good stuff.

Speaker 5

3:18

Fun to dress up and be with the kids.

3:20

I get to just be a kid tonight too.

3:21

And what are you wearing tonight?

3:23

Today I'm just a girl scout, you know.

3:25

No no cookies though.

Speaker 4

3:27

She didn't bring me thin mint somehow.

Speaker 5

3:29

Luckily they're handing out candy inside.

3:31

So

Speaker 4

3:32

excellent.

3:32

Well, thanks so much, Stephanie, and good luck to you guys.

3:35

Thank you.

3:35

So this like I said, 45 years of Boo at the Zoo here at the Louisville Zoo.

3:40

That takes a lot of preparation, a lot of staffing power, a lot of volunteer power, a lot of setup, a lot of costumes, a lot of candy.

3:47

I'm gonna bring in Diane Taylor from our very own staff.

3:51

Diane has been at the zoo for like

Unassigned speaker

3:53

tell

Speaker 4

3:53

us how long you've been at the zoo.

3:55

Um, we're on my 48th year.

3:57

That's like a lifetime at the zoo.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Animal Welfare█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Public Engagement█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Summary of Proceedings

Louisville Zoo Boo at the Zoo and Airport Updates - October 27, 2026

The meeting included promotional announcements for Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport's new nonstop flights and an extended interview highlighting the 45th anniversary of the Louisville Zoo's Boo at the Zoo event, particularly its partnership with Kozair for Kids to provide a sensory-friendly experience for children with special needs.

Discussion Items

  • Airport Expansion: A promotional segment announced that starting May 2026, Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport will offer new nonstop flights to Gulf Shores/Orange Beach, Hartford, and Pittsburgh. Travelers were directed to FlyLouisville.com for details.
  • Boo at the Zoo 45th Anniversary: Kyle Shepherd from the Louisville Zoo introduced the event, noting it is presented by Meyer and has run for 45 years. Stephanie Smith, Event VP at Kozair for Kids, described the partnership of over 20 years. She stated that the zoo closes on a Wednesday night to allow 2,500 children and families from financial assistance programs and over 100 organizations across Kentucky to attend without sensory overload. Families begin requesting tickets as early as August. Smith expressed full support for the event, calling it a night where kids "just get to be kids."
  • Volunteer Staffing: Diane Taylor, a zoo staff member with 48 years of experience, explained that volunteer recruitment for Boo at the Zoo begins in January. Approximately 900 volunteers are needed to staff 16–17 nights of the event, each about four hours long. Volunteers come from companies, schools, and National Honor Societies.

Key Outcomes

  • No formal votes, decisions, or public comments were recorded. The interview and announcements were informational in nature.

(Note: The provided transcription did not include a full meeting agenda, minutes, or formal city council business. The content consisted of a promotional airport advertisement and a zoo event interview, likely part of a larger meeting or broadcast.)

Meeting Transcript

You can just label what the dog food is. We won't let the food go to waste. We're gonna give it out to the community to make sure that the pets are being fed. Louisville Mohammed Ali International Airport keeps growing and taking you to new places. Coming this May, you can fly nonstop to Gulf Shores Orange Beach, Hartford, and Pittsburgh. Getting there is a breeze with Louisville Mohammed Ali International Airport. Visit Fly Louisville.com for all the details. An electrical inspection is part of the electrical permit process. Hi, I'm Kyle Shepherd with the Louisville Zoo, and we're here at uh Boo at the Zoo, one of our favorite times of year during Halloween. It's our 45th anniversary for Boo at the Zoo presented by Meyer. Tonight is Wednesday night. We're here with uh a special group from our partner Kozair for Kids. I'm gonna bring Stephanie Smith in. She's the event manager, event VP at Kozair for Kids. What is so special about this particular party? We have been lucky enough to partner with the Louisville Zoo for over 20 years for this event. We close down the zoo on a Wednesday night, and we allow our kids that we serve to come in and just take the zoo at their own pace. It can get really crowded on a normal night, and some of our kiddos need a little extra time, a little less uh sensory overload, and you all make that possible for them. And this is a pretty special year. You've been doing this for over 20 years, so obviously there's something special about it. Uh and how many guests are we expecting tonight? So we try to limit the guest number. We've got 2,500 tickets out tonight, and we expect a pretty big crowd with weather like this. It's absolutely gorgeous, and our families look forward to this every single year. So this is over 22 22 years, I believe. Do you get a lot of feedback from families on how special this party is? Oh yeah, they start emailing me in like August to get their tickets and make sure that they're on the list. Because a lot of these kiddos can't handle long lines or crowds or you know, they they might be in a wheelchair or have um something that assists them with their walking, and so coming in and taking it slow, it allows them to really experience this time of year and enjoy the zoo. I've heard you guys often refer to it as it's one of those one of those nights where the kids just get to be kids. Exactly. It is exactly that. Um we offer these tickets to our financial assistance families, and then we also partner with over a hundred organizations across the state of Kentucky. So people are coming from as far as bowling green to be here tonight. We've got Ask Out in Paducah. Um so we're excited that they they want to be a part of this as much as we want them to be here. And we love having you guys here. You guys have been great partners for these last 22 years. So welcome back and thanks for thanks for uh coming in tonight and and all that good stuff. Fun to dress up and be with the kids. I get to just be a kid tonight too. And what are you wearing tonight? Today I'm just a girl scout, you know. No no cookies though. She didn't bring me thin mint somehow. Luckily they're handing out candy inside. So excellent.

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