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Grand Forks, ND
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: Smiley Park and Skidmore Park had fallen out of regular use, reducing places for neighbors to gather and limiting opportunities for older adults who once helped lead community activities. The project refreshed both parks with garden beds, a little free library, a bike rack and safer sidewalk access. Activation events, including a 50th anniversary celebration, brought residents back and helped older volunteers reconnect with younger families. Weekly walking meetups resumed and improved signage and banners strengthened community identity. These changes helped residents build new routines in the parks and encouraged continued advocacy for long term upgrades. One participant noted that the work helped bring awareness to the need for people to stay active and educated. The improvements also positioned neighbors to push for future safety enhancements and park investments, supporting lasting use of the spaces.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Weston, WV
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: A paved, covered outdoor seating area will be added beside the dining room with safe walkway access at the local Senior Center. The space will allow more visitors to enjoy fresh air and social time during meals and community events.
Montpelier, VT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: To provide a place for cyclists and walkers to rest and socialize, this project developed a pocket park along an existing bike path. Guertin Pocket Park features a pergola -- a wooden structure with a roof -- to provide shelter from the sun or rain. Project organizers also incorporated seating and bike racks, as well as a rainwater collection system that feeds a small decorative garden. In 2021, the city decided to move the pocket park to a new location in the heart of downtown.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Hyde Park, VT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2017
Project Category: Accessibility of amenities
Description: Elsa French Park is a new pocket park featuring lilacs bushes and gardens planted on the grounds of an historic home. This project ensured the accessibility of the space for residents and visitors of all ages and ability levels. The Village of Hyde Park installed two ADA-accessible picnic tables, along with an accessible pathway with a ramp and detectible edges for visitors with disabilities. Project organizers say the improvements helped lay the groundwork for ongoing development of the site, which they envision as an important gathering space in a community that lacks a central town square. In addition, the Village has repurposed the house on the property to house municipal offices and a community meeting space.
Worcester, VT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Public space improvements to support recovery after extreme weather events
Description: Flood-damaged parking, trail sections and signage along a popular community trail will be repaired. The work will restore safe, flat access so residents, especially older adults, can walk and relax by the river.
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