Hogle Zoo brought out a big cat Wednesday to demonstrate what a $65 million voter-approved bond could do for the zoo.

Bigger spaces. Cageless exhibits. A haven for endangered species.

Whether taxpayers will agree to help foot the bill remains to be seen.

At a media briefing Wednesday, zoo executive director Craig Dinsmore detailed the zoo's master plan, a project that may take as long as eight years to transform the zoo's aging exhibits through modern enhancements.

He pointed to amur leopard Vladamere as one animal that has benefited from such advances. The 4-year-old leopard, one of 40 in the world, lives in the new spacious Asian Highlands exhibit, which helps advertise the conservation of wild creatures and their habitats.

"There's no more excuse in today's world for an OK zoo," Dinsmore said. "The only way to justify having animals in a zoo setting is to have really great habitats for them to live in, really great programs for people to learn about them, and ways to get those people empowered and involved in conservation.

"It's not enough today to simply build a space for animals," he added. "We build homes for animals to live in ... not a box somewhere."

The Salt Lake zoo needs $85 million as part of its "Renew the Zoo" campaign to complete the master plan. Zoo officials hope that $65 million will come through an eight-year Salt Lake County bond they want on the November ballot. The other $20 million would come from private donors.

The Salt Lake County Council questioned the bond last week but voted unanimously to pass it on to the Debt Review and Community Services committees.

Dinsmore emphasized that plan eventually will make the zoo more financially independent from public funds.

Currently, the primary focus is an Arctic zone, with space for five adult polar bears to swim in an underwater viewing tank, chill in an ice cave and even dig into the ground. The area could also include bald eagles, seals and snowy owls and would be the zoo's most expensive exhibit at $15 million.

Dinsmore described the old polar bear exhibit as a stark, old-fashioned, concrete environment.

"It wasn't very nice for the animals," he said. "It worked and it kept them healthy and living long lives, but we know we can do much better for polar bears and other Arctic animals."

The exhibits also will feature more endangered animals to help preserve their species. The zoo chose polar bears as a priority because they are slowly dying off. Global warming has decreased sea ice in Arctic regions, leaving less space for polar bears to roam.