Haskell created this project for its “largest” clients to date.

Thirty-five retired performing Asian elephants needed a new home and needed an entirely new way of life.

At White Oak Conservation in Yulee, Florida, Haskell helped transform 2,500 acres into one of the most ambitious elephant habitats ever built. Designed to mirror the elephants’ natural environment, the refuge features forests, grasslands, wetlands, interconnected waterholes and climate-controlled barns with specialized veterinary facilities, allowing the endangered animals to roam, socialize and receive lifelong care.

Developed in three phases, the habitat ultimately includes more than 50,000 feet of fencing, and when complete, it will be home to the largest herd of Asian elephants in the Western Hemisphere.

Our teams took an environmentally conscious building approach.

Environmental constraints were specifically a challenge here. Heavy machinery was difficult to operate on the low and wet terrain, which had to remain as pristine as possible. Haskell developed new construction methods to erect more than 10 miles of massive fencing while minimizing its equipment footprint. The team condensed their approach, using a single crane and installing both the foundation and fence posts in one step, rather than two. This way, they installed about 70 poles a day, cutting installation time by 30% and saving $20 per linear foot.

To maximize the client’s existing resources, Haskell repurposed unused steel tubing that White Oak Conservation had purchased for another project to fabricate the barn’s roof. The approach reduced material costs while leveraging Haskell’s in-house steel fabrication capabilities.

The habitat is setting a new standard for elephant care.

With Phase 1 complete, a dozen female Asian elephants quickly settled into their new home, roaming the 135-acre habitat, bathing in interconnected pools and foraging among the trees and shrubs. As additional phases move forward, Haskell continues to help expand a conservation effort that not only provides lifelong care for an endangered species but also sets a new benchmark for purpose-built wildlife habitats.