After nine years of looming in the background of every family picture taken at the Minnesota Zoo, the steel remains of the zoo's monorail system are getting a new life. The state-supported institution has announced plans to build a 1.25 mi pedestrian walkway on top of the steel structure, a project it's calling the Treetop Trail. Because the zoo was originally designed with the monorail as its center, the walkway, which is scheduled to be completed in summer 2023, will let guests again see attractions from the ele- vated perspective intended by the original designers. The sights include the zoo's Back 40, a forested piece of property that contains wetland that guests could not otherwise see, says Zach Nugent, the communication and media relations specialist at the Minnesota Zoo, which is in Apple Valley, a Twin Cities suburb.
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