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Milwaukee, WI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Walk Audits
Description: Older adults living near Humboldt Park faced walking conditions that made reaching the park and nearby destinations uncomfortable and, at times, unsafe. Unmarked crosswalks, uneven sidewalks, obstructed paths and short crossing times created challenges, especially for people using mobility aids. Humboldt Park Friends organized six walk audits that brought residents together to examine conditions firsthand and document issues block by block. One participant said they would never walk those streets the same way again after seeing how hazards stacked up within a single block. The findings were shared with residents and local officials, giving older adults a clearer voice in conversations about pedestrian safety and future improvements.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Providence, RI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Walk Audits
Description: Age-Friendly Providence examined pedestrian safety conditions that made walking uncomfortable and risky for older adults in several dense neighborhoods. Uneven sidewalks, traffic conditions and missing comfort features limited confidence and mobility, while residents had few ways to influence street design. Through community walk audits, older adults documented safety and accessibility concerns along targeted routes. Insights from a visually impaired participant highlighted how lifted sidewalks and obstacles pose serious challenges. The findings produced location-specific documentation that is being shared with city planners. By centering lived experience, the project ensured older adult needs are shaping future safety priorities and infrastructure recommendations.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Easton, PA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Walk Audits
Description: A walk audit during the group's Healthfest revealed cracked sidewalks, blocked ramps and unsafe crossings in downtown Easton, limiting mobility for older adults. The audit led to recommendations for repairs, wheelchair-accessible paths and pedestrian-controlled signals at key intersections. Findings were shared with city officials to prompt safety improvements. "Incorporating the Walk Audit was very enlightening to help the...population of downtown Easton," organizers said, noting the effort gave residents a voice in shaping safer streets.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Greensboro, NC
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Creativity as a Catalyst for Inclusion, a project of the Creative Aging Network, worked to create a community garden and outdoor classroom for community events. Assembling a team of volunteers and community activists, they cleaned up the grounds, built raised garden beds, created walking paths and planted native vegetation. A local artisan created custom benches for the garden, created from the wood of a fallen tree on the property. To bring people into the space, local artists led a series of workshops onsite. Project organizers say activities programmed for the garden are meant to be inclusive and appeal to people of all ages and abilities.
Greensboro, NC
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Pedestrian Safety
Description: Speeding traffic, trucks and bus activity made it risky to cross W. Elmsley Dr., a link to shopping and a transit corridor used by many older adults. The city installed a permanent high-visibility crosswalk with pedestrian-activated flashing lights, ADA ramps and a refuge island, then added a new sidewalk to complete the connection. Walk audits with residents informed the location and built buy-in. During filming, staff saw drivers slow and stop for the beacon, and crossing felt noticeably safer. The project also aligned with plans for higher-frequency transit and spurred interdepartmental coordination on future safety upgrades.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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