Las Cruces, NM

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023

Project Category: Public art installations

Description: This project will help community members beautify a revitalizing downtown through a participatory paint-by-numbers mural on the wall of a nonprofit makerspace.

Dona Ana County, NM

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020

Project Category: Public or private transit access

Description: Founded in 2016, the South Central Transit District serves a largely rural area in New Mexico's Mesilla Valley. Before its launch, no public transportation services covered this part of the state. Despite the area's hot summer temperatures, few of the District's bus stops had amenities aimed at helping transit riders wait comfortably. To fix this, the District added two dozen benches and four bus shelters in several communities, including Anthony, Chaparral, Sunland Park and Hatch. District staff constructed concrete pads for the benches, which sit in high traffic areas. The work represents the first phase of improvements to stops -- the District plans to add LED lighting to increase safety for riders. Project organizers say the shelters and benches are popular with students and older adults, who make up a large share of the transit system's ridership.