Neillsville, WI

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025

Project Category: Public space activation

Description: Older adults and disabled residents asked for a safe place to rest along a busy walking trail. The Neillsville Improvement Corporation turned a brushy creekside patch into an accessible spot that makes short walks doable for people who need frequent breaks. Crews cleared brush and graded the site. They added an accessible path, sturdy picnic table, a bench with a view of the creek, plus a waste bin and signage. Use jumped right away. The project is prompting plans to extend the trail and add more rest areas, with a grant application underway and a bike and pedestrian plan slated for 2026. Older and disabled residents say they are more likely to walk when places to rest are available.

Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.

Bismarck, ND

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021

Project Category: Public space activation

Description: As part of Bismarck's Health in All Policies initiative, the City made improvements to its 16th Street Park, intending to create a sense of place and encourage residents to be active outdoors. To revitalize the park, project organizers installed a new bench, ADA-accessible picnic table and game table. Local artists also designed a mural for a building onsite and decorated walkways with sidewalk chalk art. To complete the activation, volunteers created designs by pushing colorful plastic cups through the park's chain link fences. Additionally, the City conducted a temporary traffic calming demonstration at a nearby roundabout in an effort to make the area safer for pedestrians.

Nashville, TN

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019

Project Category: Public space activation

Description: With the goal of reducing social isolation for older residents, Urban Housing Solutions designed and constructed a temporary parklet at Mercury Court, a small affordable housing community close to downtown Nashville. The organization outfitted the outdoor space with patio chairs, picnic tables, planter boxes, solar string lights and shade umbrellas. They also repainted a community room and decorated a wall with graphics celebrating the property's history. To ensure the space enables social interaction, a group of residents worked to coordinate social events, such as movie and game nights and community meals. In addition, Mercury Courts residents have shown interest in using the new planter boxes as garden beds. Urban Housing Solutions is a nonprofit housing developer serving Nashville's unhoused and low-income residents.