Merlin Entertainments Group is Planning to Build a $15 Million Sea Life Aquarium at Phoenix

By Julie Estrada

Phoenix, AZ - Global leisure giant Merlin Entertainments Group is planning to build a $15 million Sea Life™ Aquarium at Phoenix’s Arizona Mills Mall in Tempe. Once approved by the City of Tempe, this will only be the second Sea Life Aquarium in the United States joining SEA LIFE™ Carlsbad, California which opened in August 2008 adjacent to LEGOLAND® California. The Phoenix Sea Life Aquarium is set to open late spring 2010.

“We believe the Sea Life Aquarium will be a wonderful addition here at Arizona Mills, and welcome the Merlin Entertainments family to ours,” said Gregg Goodman, President of the Mills, a Simon Company. “We are confident the community will revel in the exquisite deep-sea wonders the aquarium will lend and feel it is the perfect complement to our broad selection of shopping and entertainment offerings.”

The Phoenix Sea Life Aquarium will be a 26,000 square feet development with 12 different habitat zones housing over 30 separate display tanks for more than 5,000 creatures ranging from shoreline marine life such as starfish and crabs to larger species such as sharks and rays.

“We are extremely pleased and excited to bring this world class aquarium to the City of Tempe,” said Merlin’s Managing Director of Midway Attractions Glenn Earlam. “A Sea Life aquarium is no mere collection of fish tanks. It’s a highly themed environment that transports visitors into the amazing world beneath the seas, educates visitors about this incredible world and provides close encounters with a vast array of creatures.”

The Phoenix Sea Life Aquarium will take guests on a journey from the Phoenix Park lakes, through river canyons and caves to the shoreline at Cabo San Lucas. It will then take them offshore to explore a coral shoaling ring and a bay of rays before they arrive at the walkthrough underwater tunnel allowing them to stroll on the seabed surrounded by sharks and other deep ocean dwellers.

There will also be an exhibition dedicated to seahorses and another focusing on octopuses and their relatives, plus a conservation-themed AV show.

The Sea Life network is a renowned supporter of marine conservation, having campaigned successfully to improve protection for species ranging from endangered sea turtles to sharks.

The new attraction will participate fully in all the network’s environment and education programs, including lending support to a major new campaign in conjunction with the Whales & Dolphin Conservation Society to help prevent any return of legalized whaling. The Sea Life network has expanded steadily since the first attraction opened in Oban, Scotland more than 30 years ago.

“Merlin is one of the few major companies in the sector which is continuing to invest in both new and existing attractions around the world, with the U.S. as one of our primary development markets. Our development team is reviewing sites across the States in line with our aggressive growth plans, and we believe the company has a very exciting future here,” continued Earlam.

The company behind iconic brands such as LEGOLAND family theme parks, Madame Tussauds and The London Eye, UK-based Merlin is the world’s biggest aquarium operator and already has 31 other Sea Life attractions in Europe. Last year, Merlin also acquired the Underwater Adventures Aquarium in the Mall of America in Minneapolis.

The second biggest visitor attraction operator in the world and the fastest growing company in the sector, Merlin Entertainments is swiftly making a name for itself in the U.S. In addition to the two aquariums, Merlin currently has seven other attractions in the U.S. with three more scheduled to open in 2010, including the Phoenix property.

LEGOLAND California has been voted the Best Children’s Park for the last five years by Amusement Today; and Merlin is also the company behind Madame Tussauds attractions in New York, Washington D.C., Las Vegas and Hollywood; and a LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Chicago.

To view Sea Life Aquarium at Logoland's web page on Zoo and Aquarium Visitor, go to:  http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-1374-SEA_LIFE_Aquarium_at_LEGOLAND_California_Resort