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Metro Transit highlights public-art installations, shelter clings and North Loop Garage murals
Summary
Metro Transit reported progress on its Public Art in Transit program: a permanent collection of 82 works (420 pieces), expanded shelter art-cling installations on 34 shelters (with a reported 32% reduction in glass breakage), restoration of historic pieces, and plans for new murals on the North Loop Garage and Green Line extension.
Mark Granlund, Metro Transit's public art administrator, presented the agency's April 22 update on the Public Art in Transit program, describing maintenance, community collaborations, and new commissions aimed at improving station environments and deterring vandalism.
Granlund said the permanent collection comprises 82 public art pieces, made up of 420 individual elements, and outlined maintenance work that returned a long-removed artwork (the "Tool Shed") to 38th Street Station after more than a decade of repairs. He reported 10 incidents of graffiti on artwork in 2025 (down from 12 in 2024 and 20 in 2023) and described ongoing conservation projects, including work on a damaged train-wheel artwork and a replacement of damaged canopy glass at Cedar Riverside Station.
The presentation highlighted the bus-shelter beautification program: art clings were added to six shelters in 2025 and 13 additional designs were installed in early 2026, bringing the program to 34 shelters with art clings created by 21 local artists. Granlund said the clings reduced glass breakage by 32%, a result Metro Transit plans to present at an upcoming transit conference.
Granlund also outlined community-funded projects such as artwork on BRT shelters funded by the Rondo Community Land Trust, and new work for the North Loop Garage (more than 6,000 square feet of mural) including commissions awarded after competitive processes. He said an assistant public art administrator (Christie Hotchkiss) joined earlier in January to focus on maintenance and program delivery.
Council members praised the program and asked about availability of digital assets and outreach; Granlund pointed to public web pages with collection information and the agency's artist roster, now expanded to roughly 160 artists for future projects.
Provenance: topicintro SEG 1331; topfinish SEG 2016.
