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City of Gulfport Economic Development Department (2018) Print
2018 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Public space activation
└ Public space activation
The City of Gulfport hoped to create a venue for educational programming, giving residents the opportunity to learn in nature. To do this, they installed a pavilion to be used as an outdoor classroom. The space serves local schools, as well as members of the wider community. Since installation, the City has worked to complete a nature trail system onsite.
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Little Falls, NJ
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: This project will create a vibrant outdoor gathering space at the Old Town Hall with age-friendly benches, flower gardens, shaded seating areas, and accessible walking paths.
Imperial, NE
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: A vacant lot in the heart of Imperial's downtown had been an eyesore for decades. To put the space to better use, the City of Imperial activated the space, creating a new pocket park. Volunteers helped create several murals onsite and installed a mosaic dragon sculpture, designed to double as a play structure for children. Using upcycled existing picnic tables and railroad ties, they also created a circular seating area, dubbed the chatroom. Local elementary school students and residents of an assisted living facility teamed up to paint tiles to decorate outdoor sectional couch. And volunteers laid down artificial turf -- a material chosen to make the mini-park easy to maintain. Raised flower beds completed the space. Since the mini-park's completion, organizers say community members continue to brainstorm ways to improve the pocket park, which they say has revitalized Imperial's arts scene.
Rochester, MN
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: After the City of Rochester cut its parks and recreation budget during the COVID-19 pandemic, many small parks in Rochester fell into disrepair. To address this, Family Service Rochester improved a pocket park in the City's Friendship Park neighborhood, a diverse, low-income area of the city. This project added new trees, benches and a multilingual information kiosk. A volunteer team dug holes, planted, watered and staked trees. Others chipped in to keep the park free of litter. Organizers say the project demonstrated that residents will invest their time to improve their neighborhood. After the project's completion, volunteers from the initiative were inspired to improve other parks in the area.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Gulfport, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Public place improvements to withstand extreme weather events
Description: After Hurricane Katrina nearly leveled the Bayou View West neighborhood in 2005, the Federal Emergency Management Agency bought out the remaining residents and handed the property over to the city. Today, the 40-acre tract is known as Brickyard Bayou Park. This project created the city's first dog park at the site. Known as the Bark Park, it attracted more than 200 people and dogs on its opening day in 2017. the space acts as a buffer -- if the area floods again, homes won't be at risk. And once the park dries out, people and pups can return. Since the Bark Park's creation, the City of Gulfport has added a kayak launch, a disc golf course, a nature trail and an outdoor classroom to Brickyard Bayou Park.
Gulfport, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019
Project Category: Public space improvements to support recovery after extreme weather events
Description: As part of revitalization efforts following flooding from Hurricane Katrina, the City of Gulfport set out to give cyclists and pedestrians a place to shelter from the weather and sun. They installed a 20-square-foot safe-weather pavilion and benches along a new bike trail in Brickyard Bayou Park. The trail connects park visitors to amenities, including an outdoor classroom, dog park and community garden. Organizers report the pavilion project has since inspired other similar structures and trails in Gulfport.
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