Water Sustainability at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden’s reconstruction was kicked off with a ground-breaking ceremony that highlighted the sustainability features the new park will contain. The Mississippi Watershed Management Organization (MWMO) is collaborating with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board (MPRB) and the Walker Art Center to install new landscaping on this site of a former wetland. A new ‘fresh meadow” will absorb stormwater runoff, while an 80,000-gallon underground cistern will hold captured runoff and excess water from the Spoonbridge and Cherry sculpture. As a result, nearly 5 million gallons of water will be used to irrigate the sculpture garden and adjacent baseball field instead of going into storm sewers. This project is modeled after much of the sustainability infrastructure that’s been installed on the Edison High School campus.