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Epicenter (2021) Print
2021 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Public places
└ Public space activation
└ Public space activation
As Epicenter worked to complete its Canal Commons affordable housing development, organizers set out to create an accessible greenspace for future residents. Located in the desert city of Green River, the pocket neighborhood lacks access to walking trails, sidewalks and parks. To address this, Epicenter installed concrete walkways. To allow residents to gather outdoors at night -- and avoid the hot, desert sun -- organizers installed LED lighting along the path. Wayfinding signage helps residents navigate the path, as well as the larger neighborhood. The space also features a picnic table, ADA-compliant benches and raised garden beds. Epicenter prioritized universal design elements for the greenspace to ensure people can age in place at Canal Commons.
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Lebanon, NH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: To assess the housing stock in 67 municipalities in New Hampshire and Vermont, the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission launched its Keys to the Valley Website. Grant funds supported website management and efforts to promote its use. The website includes an open data portal, where site visitors can engage with regional housing data, read personal stories, view maps and use interactive tools for analysis. Aerial and ground photography highlight the different types of housing across the region. Project organizers hope the website will highlight each community's unique housing needs, as well as features such as proximity to grocery stores and hospitals. To promote the site, commission staff created a video, launched a newsletter, attended public engagement events and talked with residents about the Keys to the Valley initiative.
Bondurant, IA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: This project will create a garden and trail featuring five works of art displayed along Lake Petocka's shoreline. The city will also construct a new kayak launch and install seating and lighting onsite.
Roundup, MT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: The large public space in the Roundup's downtown lacked accessible seating. As part of its historic preservation and economic development work, Roundup Community Partners added picnic tables and benches to the plaza. The new seating is designed to be accessible for visitors of all ages and abilities. The plaza sits on the town's Main Street and project organizers hope the seating helps incentivize residents and visitors to shop and eat downtown.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Green River, UT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019
Project Category: Accessory dwelling units, tiny homes and manufactured housing
Description: Epicenter conducted outreach to older residents about their housing needs, with the goal informing the design of its Frontier House prototype. Costing 36,000, Epicanter envisions the small home as an affordable alternative to mobile homes, where many rural residents live. The 708-square-foot home -- scaled to the minimum house size allowed by City code -- prioritizes accessibility. Designed to be low maintenance, the house is meant to enable residents to age in place in their community. Epicenter plans to monitor the structure for three years to track its utility usage and durability. The nonprofit also uses the prototype as a teaching tool within the community. The nonprofit works to close the housing affordability gap for low-to-moderate income households in rural Utah through home repair and new housing construction.
Green River, UT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: The project will build a pavilion at Pearl Baker Park designed to be accessible to older visitors, with hand rails and a soft pathway surface to reduce the potential for injuries from falls.
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