Detroit — The end of the road has arrived for the Belle Isle Zoo.

Demolition crews worked Tuesday to tear down the long-abandoned zoo, which has sat idle for more than 20 years. It started Nov. 3, said Michigan Department of Natural Resources Urban Area Field Planner Amanda Treadwell.

The west end of the zoo site will be converted into 110 parking spaces and reconnect Vista Avenue, Treadwell said.

"The majority of the site will restore the ecological habitat," Treadwell said, adding that site workers were clearing away invasive species on Tuesday.

Meagan Elliott, president and CEO of the Belle Isle Conservancy, said Tuesday she realizes that getting rid of the zoo, which dates back more than a century, will be emotional for many, even though the site is now considered dangerous.

"Peo

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