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City of Eastport (2018) Print
2018 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Park enhancements
└ Park enhancements
The City of Eastport wanted to give visitors to its new park an interactive, low-impact activity, suitable for people of all ages. So they installed a music part onsite. The space features several permanent, outdoor musical instruments, including a drum set and a yantzee and duet -- both of which are mallet instruments similar to a glockenspiel. The improvements are part of larger remediation efforts to transform a former landfill on Passamaquoddy Bay into Cony Park, a four-acre outdoor space.
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Missoula, MT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2018
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: To improve public health and increase residents' physical activity, the City of Missoula launched the Rx Trails program. Through the initiative, the local Parks and Recreation Department partners with local health care providers encourage patients to walk. The City worked to designate a path through McCormick Park as an Rx trail -- pathways featuring amenities including, drinking fountains, benches and accessible parking. They installed two benches and posted a map to help visitors navigate the trail. Additionally, they distributed promotional materials to residents to inform them about Rx Trails.
New Rockford, ND
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: An aging building built in the 1950s limited safe, accessible recreation and raised liability concerns. The park district relocated the skating rink to All Veterans Park and installed a new ADA-accessible multi-purpose building with benches, skate racks and improved lighting. Volunteers helped finish the interior, creating a year-round hub for skating, kayaking and community events. Participation in winter activities doubled, and older adults are engaging more. "Our 50-plus people have started to get active which is what we are striving for," said a project lead, highlighting its role in fostering inclusion and health.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Pollock Pines, CA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: This project set out to create a park, where Pollock Pines residents can gather. Following community engagement efforts, organizers with Community Economic Development Association Pollock Pines decided to highlight local history through the greenspace's design, paying tribute to early settlers, the Old West, the Pony Express, wagon trains and the gold mining and logging industries. To give residents a place to exercise, they also incorporated fitness equipment specifically designed for older adults.
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Bowdoinham, ME
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: The Town of Bowdoinham provided elevated planters to six residents who, because of disabilities, could not maintain traditional, in-the-ground gardens. Members of the local Masons Lodge constructed the raised beds and delivered soil to each recipient. To showcase the planters, the Town hosted a community meal featuring local produce, which included a presentation about the benefits of raised beds. In addition, the Town founded a garden club, which meets monthly.
Chelsea, ME
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Older adults in Chelsea had few accessible spaces for social connection or healthy activities, leaving many isolated. The project transformed a schoolyard into an intergenerational garden with eight wheelchair-accessible raised beds, a convertible bench and a canopy. Residents and students planted, harvested and shared produce, which supplied the local food bank and monthly luncheons. Donations and repeat visits showed strong community engagement. Future plans include expanding raised beds and adding a permanent structure for year-round use.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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