The project to renovate the lion habitat and add indoor winter quarters represented a unique opportunity for the design team to showcase its creative talents. The construction work included a steeply sloped habitat similar to the existing one, but detached from the building; expansion of the building to accommodate an indoor habitat visible to visitors; construction of a covered and wire-screened observation area that allows for natural ventilation and minimally heated in winter to allow visitors to view the animals in their two habitats year-round; construction of a glass-ceilinged tunnel for observing the lions.
The organization Aquariums and Zoos of Canada (CAZA) awarded the Thomas R. Baines Prize to the Zoo de Granby for the development of the new lion habitat, inaugurated in June 2019