Lorain, OH

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019

Project Category: Park enhancements

Description: This project made improvements to Falbo Park, including adding a 20- by 20-foot shade awning, a large glider swing and an additional shade structure featuring a trellis for vines to climb. The City of Lorain designed these enhancements to make Falbo Park a space for intergenerational physical activity, play and community-building. The park hosted activities and provided solace to residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. This project sparked other tangible changes to Falbo Park. In 2021, the City added a butterfly garden to attract pollinators. They also installed accessible bench-style swings in other parts of town, including at the local outdoor concert venue.

Los Angeles, CA

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019

Project Category: Park enhancements

Description: The 35,000 inhabitants of Los Angeles' Westlake/MacArthur Park community live within a 10-minute walk of Golden Age Park, and a third of those residents live in poverty. Working with city agencies and local senior centers, the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust wanted to beautify the small park and provide a space for gardening and gathering. New picnic tables, a barbecue pit, tool shed and plantings transformed the park into an inviting center for recreation. Since the improvements, the City has footed the bill for continued maintenance. A mural to enliven the site is now in the works.

Wheatland, WY

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021

Project Category: Park enhancements

Description: As fewer and fewer residents took up the game, the horseshoe pits in Lewis Park went largely unused. The Town of Wheatland hoped to turn the pits into a more useful space fitting residents' modern tastes. So the Town converted them into pickleball courts. The Town staff worked with volunteers to clear and resurface the space, then install nets, posts, and fencing. To raise money for further improvements -- including seating for spectators -- the Town hosted a fundraising charity onsite. Project organizers say the new courts give people of all ages an option for outdoor exercise. Pickleball is popular with older adults since the fast-paced game is low impact and easy on joints.