with around 2,000 people in attendance, including the press, political and local leaders. Anheuser-Busch formally announced the operating hours of the Busch brewery and gardens in May. The brewery and gardens officially opened to the public for tours on June 1, 1959, as an admission-free facility with 250 attending the opening ceremony and around 1,000 attendees to Busch Gardens. Busch Gardens opened on of land southwest of the brewery at the cost of around $500,000. The associated gardens featured lagoons and landscaping done by Charles B. Wedding, with around 36,000 flowering plants and 300 trees. Opening animal attractions for Busch Gardens included a bird show in an amphitheater seating around 200 individuals, a bird sanctuary featuring flamingos and a separate animal area named "Devil's Island," and caged enclosures for eagles and cockatoos. Additional attractions included a dwarf village and the "Hospitality House," a William B. Harvard designed facility that sampled free beer to guests. Another was used for housing the brewers Budweiser Clydesdales, and planned to host buffalo, ostriches, and zebras located east of the brewery. The original gardens was later dubbed the "Bird Gardens". 1959–1968: Additions and African veldt A $5 million expansion was announced in July 1959 by Anheuser-Busch to the existing facility because of the newfound success. In February 1960, construction started on a geodesic dome in the gardens that was high and in diameter, later opening on March 22, at the cost of $75,000. The dome, named the Adolphus Busch Space Frame, was constructed from anodized aluminum colored gold and located north of the bird amphitheater. The dome featured landscaping, suspended birds nests, and ponds that connected to a lagoon outside. Anheuser-Busch revealed its plan to construct the "Stairway to the Stars" attraction in October that would be a Otis escalator to the roof of the brewery. The escalator opened on March 22, 1961, as part of a renovation to the Busch brewery and its public tours. The escalator featured a pool beneath, a observation deck atop of the brewery, and a raised walkway to enter Busch Gardens. The pool originally hosted penguins. Anheuser-Busch bought additional parcels of land in May 1962. In the same month, Anheuser-Busch communicated its intentions to expand Busch Gardens at the cost of $3.5 to $4 million as the company projected a rise in attendance for the coming decade necessitating growth. The expansion called for different themed lands, with an African