City says one or more zoo board members have talked of relocating zoo animals to Rankin County.

Zoo could be closed 'temporarily' to allow incoming management company time to acquire a license.

City claims the zoo board owes more than $6 million in unpaid water bills.

Questions remain over who owns the animals.

The Jackson City Council earlier this week voted to sue the board managing the Jackson Zoo for more than $6 million in unpaid water bills.

But a recent legal filing suggests the city is more interested in finding a way to keep the zoo animals in place as a new management company prepares to assume zoo responsibilities.

The council at a Tuesday meeting voted 5 to 2 to authorize the city attorney to pursue legal action against the Jackson Zoological Society and its board of directors.

On Thursday, the city filed paperwork in Hinds County Chancery Court that not only claims the zoo board owes "approximately $6 million" in unpaid water bills, but also seeks to prevent the zoo board from "encumbering or removing" the zoo animals.

It further claims "one or more JZS board members" have said they intend to relocate zoo animals and property to the McClain petting zoo in Rankin County.

"There is some likelihood that JZS might conceal, sell, transfer, donate, encumber or otherwise dispose of these assets without satisfying the city's claim," the filing reads.

The JZS has asked the city for funding to cover payroll and animal care the last several months due to a downward trend in zoo attendance. Among its remaining assets are the zoo animals.

According to the lease contracts, the city owns the land and all the infrastructure of the zoo — including all animal habitats — while JZS owns the lion's share of the animals.

Who owns the animals at the zoo?

The legal filing appears to be a way for the city to leverage those assets, even though there are still questions over who owns the animals, contends Robert Blaine, the city's chief administrative officer.

The filing claims the animals at the zoo were under a lease agreement between the city and JZS, and once that lease has expired, the animals should be returned to the city.

"There is some question about the ownership of the animals. The city has been doing research, and there seems to be documentation that the city leased the collection to JZS," Blaine said.

City's legal office remains tight-lipped

So far, the city under the direction of its city attorney declined to turn over any information on how much the city expends in water for the zoo on a monthly or yearly basis.

"Because the City is in active litigation with regards to this matter, there will be no further responses to the media about it," the office said in an email.

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Past estimates put that number at about $60,000 a month which would mean the zoo hasn't paid a water bill in close to 10 years.

Likewise, information on whether the city's infrastructure is to blame for leaks at the zoo also was not released. The city's water department will often make adjustments to water bills based on known leaks.

Zoo closure possible as management group seeks a license

In January, the city issued a request for proposals for zoo management companies and decided to forgo JZS, which has operated the zoo since the mid-1980s. Instead, it announced it would pursue contract negotiations with ZoOceanarium Group LLC, a Missouri-based company that currently provides management for animal attractions worldwide. The city is looking at a five-year lease with the company although financial details of the contract have not been released.

The company manages one property in the United States, the St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station. It still does not have an exhibitor's license which is required to own, sell or exhibit animals, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture which issues the license. It also requires a visit from the agency. So far, that hasn't taken place, which raises questions if the zoo board feels comfortable handing over the animals to a company without a license.

Blaine called the lack of a license an "oversight" by the city and the company. He said the zoo during the transition period might be forced to close down "temporarily" to allow major infrastructure repairs to take place and give additional time for ZoOceanarium to obtain the required license.

The city plans to use the $350,000 in state bond funding it repaid after the former zoo director illegally used the funds to cover payroll.

Still, Blaine said a contract with ZoOceanarium will come before the council in the next "30 to 60 days."

Zoo board officials, citing the pending litigation, declined to comment for this story.

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Contact Justin Vicory at 769-572-1418 or jvicory@gannett.com. Follow @justinvicory on Twitter.