Name: Whats next for Marineland and its 30 beluga whales
Uploaded: 2025-12-19T00:31:28.227Z
Duration: 3 min 24 s
Description: Residents in Niagara Falls, Ont. are waiting for news about the future of the Marineland property and the animals currently housed there, including 30 beluga whales. For The National, CBC’s Lisa Xing breaks down the challenges and one proposal to turn the site into a $4-billion entertainment complex and sanctuary.

Residents in Niagara Falls, Ont. are waiting for news about the future of the Marineland property and the animals currently housed there, including 30 beluga whales. For The National, CBC’s Lisa Xing breaks down the challenges and one proposal to turn the site into a $4-billion entertainment complex and sanctuary.

Niagara Falls

Marineland, a former theme park and zoo adjacent to Niagara Falls, has closed to the public, leaving a large property and the fate of up to 30 beluga whales and four dolphins in question. The site's redevelopment is complicated by concerns over the care of the remaining animals, with potential buyers deterred by the associated responsibilities and liabilities.

A proposal from Knapp Capital Management aims to transform the site into a $4 billion entertainment complex that would include a sanctuary for the marine mammals, but negotiations with the province have stalled. Ontario's government has expressed openness to proposals, but the future of the property and its animals remains uncertain pending necessary approvals.

What's next for Marineland and its 30 beluga whales

An iconic Canadian landmark and one of Canada's most popular tourist attractions Niagara Falls draws millions every year even in a deep freeze. On its doorstep this massive property about 400 hectares home to Marineland a former theme park and zoo shuttered to the public this year. How valuable is property like that? Oh my goodness it is huge. Local real estate agent Shelby Tomlinson says the future of the site is often the talk among friends and neighbours. Every time I drive by it makes me really sad because I see it sitting empty and I feel like we could use that space for something really good. It seems almost everyone at this local diner has an opinion on the space. After all for close to 60 years it was a major driver of the local economy. A destination for visitors featuring whales, dolphins, sea lions. Many have a personal connection. Yeah I worked there for two summers growing up so I do have some memories. I think they should do something to give the residents or the kids of Niagara Falls jobs like it used to do for us. That's what they need here is something it's going to draw more tourists in. But giving Marineland a new future isn't so straightforward. There are still animals here including up to 30 beluga whales and four dolphins. The legacy of changing public sentiment toward captive animals used for entertainment. We're kind of caught in between what it used to be and what it's going to be. The mayor of Niagara Falls has no illusions about the challenge these animals pose to any potential buyer. It seems to be an impossible situation. It's kind of what's the best what's the best of all the options. I regularly meet with proponents that would be potentially interested in buying the property and converting it and investing significantly but they're all scared off by the liability of the creatures. The problem is the animals would not survive if released in the wild. Any proposed sanctuary could be a long time away and may not be able to accommodate all of them. What we see is the best option and the most humane and compassionate option is to keep the whales close to home. One proposal is from Knapp Capital Management, an investment company based in New Jersey. It wants to build a four billion dollar entertainment complex on the site including hotels, casinos and a sanctuary for the marine mammals. They say the roughly two million dollars a month needed to feed and care for them funded by a data center on site. What we're going to do is carve out in that contract an annuity that would fund annual operations for the sanctuary fund the staff who we plan on keeping on all of them full-time. But the company says talks with the province have stalled. Recently Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced a multi-billion dollar tourism plan for the region and said he's open to proposals. They want to come in and put an offer to Ontario well we'll look at it. But a project of this size will need zoning permits and approvals from multiple levels of government and without everyone on the same page the future of the land and its animals is still uncertain.

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