Storm Drain Art Program

The City of St. Cloud’s Storm Drain Art Program integrates art into meaningful environmental messages about stormwater pollution prevention awareness. The program works with the community to create unique designs showcasing the personality of where each storm drain art mural is located while educating about the importance of being good water stewards. With over 8,000 storm drains in the City, it is important to generate awareness about protecting our waterways, creating a heathier community and making the connection of storm water to our drinking water source, the Mississippi River.

In 2021, the City worked in partnership with local artist Sarah Drake, the Sauk River Watershed District (SRWD), and the community to launch the Storm Drain Art Program; a MN Department of Health Source Water Protection Grant provides program funding. 14 murals have been completed with 4 new murals in 2023 and 1 new mural in 2024.

The Storm Drain Art Program complements the City's Adopt-A-Drain Program where residents adopt storm drains to keep them clear of sediment, trash, yard waste and debris to reduce water pollution. This is an opportunity for residents to stay connected to their community, become more educated in area water quality, make a difference and work together for clean water.

Storm drain art brings beauty to the City and awareness about the connection of our actions to the storm drain system and our water resources. The City plans to continue working with amazing local artists to bring attention to stormwater pollution prevention. Stop by and check out these spectacular storm drain art murals in person.

Sarah Drake, MS, is a self-taught award-winning collagist, author-illustrator of a three book series, and teaching artist in Sauk Rapids, MN. She has exhibited her artwork internationally in New York, Moscow, London, Tokyo, Ouagadougou, and Ulaanbaatar. Sarah's artworks have earned her multiple awards, including the Central MN Arts Board Individual Artist Award, VSA Minnesota/Jerome Foundation Emerging Artist with Disability award, and Central MN Arts Board Emerging Artist award.

Sarah has a Master of Science degree in Social Responsibility from St. Cloud State University and is the founder/CEO of herARTS in Action. Her work on human rights and social justice topics over the past two decades inspire her artistic creations and community work.

After founding herARTS in Action, Sarah wanted to get involved in water locally, not just in Burkina Faso, Africa. She found CMWEA and H2You, and waited for the opportunity to continue water education with art. Piloting the first season of storm drain murals in St. Cloud was just the opportunity she'd been waiting for.

James Lundberg & Rebekah Glasmann, are the team that makes up Traumen Glasberg Designs, a full-service design firm located in Central Minnesota. Their artistic lives are completely dedicated the act of creating for a living & fulfilling dreams through art. They have served architectural, construction & interior design professionals as well as the general public for over twenty years. Their commissioned artwork, in both digital & traditional form, can be seen nationally in private & public collections, including hospitals, colleges, restaurants & other public spaces throughout the country.

Focusing on their dream of having an art & design business, husband and wife team, James Lundberg and Rebekah Glasmann joined forces. Combining their last names with the German word, "Traumen" which means, "to dream", Traumen Glasberg Designs was estabished. For the last 20+ years, it has been with this spirit of imagination, they approach each project. With uncompromising quality, planning and execution they now work to fulfill the dreams of their clients.

Sandra is a visual artist creating in paint, pencil, and pixels. She has explored many mediums such as fibers, clay, photography, and bookbinding, but her main areas of focus are painting and drawing. Working with traditional mediums such as pen, paint, paper, canvas, and other traditional tools is very gratifying. In recent years, using technology to create, allows her to do things she cannot do traditionally. Both methods have their pros and cons. For each art project, she has the option to choose one method or a blend of both methods. The subject matter of her personal projects tends to lean toward a positive theme. Artwork that Sandra is commissioned to do, gives her the opportunity to create something she may not have thought of on her own or using material that she would not have considered.

As a recent graduate of The College of Saint Benedict, Julia Marie hopes to implement her knowledge and spread her positive energy through paintings with bright colors and groovy compositions. Her work is often inspired by wildlife and flowers as she grew up in rural Minnesota. Julia Marie is an incipient artist, but she has big plans for the future and continues to explore new ideas each day!

Jared is a US Army Combat Veteran, entrepreneur and scholar that found art as medium to restore inner strength. When he is not navigating his multiple businesses, he is serving in the veteran community as the Vice President of St. Cloud Standdown, a veteran non-profit that assists veterans in need. Jared has assisted in many art and design projects, including being selected as the Design Engineer for the new Veterans Rock memorial which is coming to Wilson Park soon.