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City of West St. Paul (2024) Print
2024 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Park enhancements
└ Park enhancements
Kennedy Park was underused and lacked features for all ages, leaving older adults without inviting spaces. The city hosted three engagement events - a community meal, a movie night and a paint-the-pavement mural. These were attended by more than 200 participants. It also added a recreation trailer for pop-up activities and commissioned an artist-designed bench to provide seating. These efforts rebuilt trust and shaped a new concept plan for the park, sparked an arts initiative and secured new funding. One resident said that they were extremely thankful the designs reflected the community's vision.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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St. John, KS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: Pickleball grew popular in St. John, but older adults driving the trend had no dedicated courts and played in borrowed spaces. The project transformed an old tennis court into six pickleball courts, two more than planned. The courts are now used daily by residents of all ages, and the school added pickleball to its physical education program. The recreation commission plans tournaments to draw regional players, boosting health and community engagement. One participant said she was thrilled to have a court nearby, and says she will get to play more often now.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
West Monroe, LA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: The Sunken Gardens at Kiroli Park had deteriorated, leaving older adults without a safe, peaceful space to enjoy nature. The city renovated the garden by installing benches as well as iron arches and trellises. It also added native plants with signage and built a platform over a stream. The restored site now offers an accessible spot for relaxation and will host cultural events during the park's centennial. One volunteer said, "As someone over the age of 50, I believe the renovated Sunken Gardens... will be a calm, peaceful location for people of all ages to walk, sit and enjoy nature."
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Mannington, WV
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: Many older adults in Mannington lacked affordable ways to stay active, with gyms and equipment out of reach for those on fixed incomes. The center installed outdoor fitness stations along a popular trail, adding options for strength and flexibility exercises in a safe, accessible setting. The project boosted motivation and social connection, helping residents improve balance and mobility. It also sparked plans to expand wellness programming and add equipment at the center, reinforcing a long-term commitment to healthy aging in the community.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
St. Paul, MN
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2018
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: This project installed a garden with native and pollinator-friendly plants at a local elementary school. Residents -- including a neighborhood Boy Scout troop -- pitched in to prepare the site and plant foliage. Community members have continued to tend to the garden since its installation. Spurred by the success of the garden, school staff area considering planting more native gardens in the future -- including rain gardens to absorb stormwater runoff.
Falcon Heights, MN
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: The Philando Castile Peace Garden Committee prepared the site of its planned memorial garden honoring Falcon Heights resident Philando Castile, who was killed by police in 2016. The Committee completed surveys of the property, conducted soil testing and created renderings of the planned garden. They created mockups of a fence designed to feature community art, as well as a remembrance bench. The Committee also hosted community work days, where volunteers prepared the soil and planted greenery. In the months since, the Committee has continued to raise private donations for the garden's creation and long-term upkeep. They recently completed accessible pathways, the remembrance bench and art at the site. Located at the site of the 2016 shooting, the garden is designed to give visitors a space to collective reflect, explore solutions to combat violence and foster community agency.
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