Bat Conservation Group To Move Locations In Metro Detroit

PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) - A bat conservation organization in eastern Michigan is relocating its headquarters to a larger space in a city about 5 miles northwest of its current home.

The Organization for Bat Conservation is relocating its Bat Zone quarters at the Cranbrook Institute of Science in Bloomfield Hills to a 10,000-square-foot building in Pontiac.

The group operates a live animal center to teach the public about the flying mammals.

Founder and Executive Director Rob Mies says the move will be "phenomenal." He says the organization needed to move to a larger spot because its growth and new projects required more space.

The organization held its final tours in Bloomfield Hills last month. It plans to host the public for a grand opening of its Pontiac location at 75 W Huron St. in Pontiac on Saturday, July 1.

Doors will open for the first time from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. for Bat Zone behind-the-scenes tours. Hang out with more than 200 animals with a trained education specialist to experience bats in flight, flying squirrels, owls, a two-toed sloth and skunks. You will also have the opportunity to see the largest species of bat in the world and meet a colony of Vampire bats. To top it all off, Batman himself will be there.

Admission is $7 (free for kids under 2 years).

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