August 28, 2026 — Traffic boxes downtown and in Mitton Village are beginning to look a little more vibrant thanks to the creativity of students at P.E. McGibbon Public School.
Wraps featuring the artwork of 36 students were installed on 10 traffic boxes in the centre of the City this week. Each wrap is comprised of several student works, all highlighting the theme My Sarnia: What Home Means to Us.
School Builders Club organizer Ryan Lounsbury approached the City looking for ways to engage students and was connected with the City’s Transportation and Development Department via the Mitton Village Development Advisory Committee. Those discussions between staff and school lead to the genesis of the project to feature student artwork on traffic infrastructure.
The school’s Builders Club members engaged every class at the school in the project, outlining the theme before individual grades brainstormed ideas and created works. In total upwards of 350 works were submitted, with the Builders Club selecting the 36 featured pieces.
“This project gave students a real opportunity to show us how they see Sarnia. So often, adults tell kids what their town is about, but this flipped the script and gave them the microphone. It helped students realize that their perspectives truly mattered, regardless of their age,” said Ryan Lounsbury, adding, “by looking at their hometown through a different lens, focusing on what makes it feel like home; where they feel included, and the little spots they love, they built a real sense of belonging. We could tell they had a blast with it. It was their way of saying, ‘this is my community, this is how I see it, and I’m proud to be a part of it.’ As staff advisors for the Builders Club, we fulfilled our aim to not only raise student awareness of all that makes Sarnia a great place to live, but also to build a sense of pride and responsibility for their city.”
“The success of an initiative such as this is owed to the creativity of these students who stepped up to provide vibrant, and personalized artwork that will stand out in the community, alongside the school staff who are going above and beyond to lead the Builders Club program,” said Alister Brown, adding, “as we continue to look at meaningful and impactful ways to add artwork into public spaces, we hope that these enhancements to otherwise ordinary infrastructure can create more opportunities to collaborate.”
Student artwork was submitted at the end of the 2025-2026 school year and designed into the vinyl wraps being installed this week.
Wraps are installed on traffic boxes at the following intersections:
- Devine Street and East Street
- Wellington Street and East Street
- Wellington Street and Russel Street
- Russel Street and Ontario Street
- Mitton Street, Wellington Street and Ontario Street
- Christina Street and Davis Street
- Christina Street and Cromwell Street
- Christina Street and Lochiel Street
- Front Street and Lochiel Street
Review the designs via the file below.