Six South Dakota Communities Receive 2024 Community Challenge Grants

Six organizations throughout the state will receive 2024 Community Challenge grants – part of the largest group of grantees to date with $3.8 million awarded among 343 organizations nationwide. Grantees will implement quick-action projects that help communities become more livable by improving public places; transportation; housing; digital connections; and more, with an emphasis on the needs of adults age 50 and older.

“AARP South Dakota is committed to working with local leaders to improve residents’ quality of life through tangible changes,” said state director Erik Gaikowski. “We are proud to collaborate with this year’s grantees as they make immediate improvements in their communities to jumpstart long-term change, especially for South Dakotans 50 and over.”

This year, the AARP Community Challenge accepted applications across three different grant opportunities, including existing flagship grants in addition to new capacity-building microgrants for improving walkability and community gardens. New demonstration grants will focus on improving transportation systems, with funding support provided by Toyota Motor North America, and housing choice design competitions.

Since 2017, AARP South Dakota has supported 33 Community Challenge grant projects, investing more than $317,000 through the program to nonprofit organizations and government entities across the state. 

Here in South Dakota, the 2024 funded projects for flagship grants include:

• The Legacy Foundation, Sioux Falls – Establish South Dakota’s first mobile medical equipment lending library, enabling Owen’s Outfitters to better serve older adults and isolated individuals in the state’s rural and tribal communities.
• City of Edgemont – Project Convert the Court will improve overall wellness among people 50-plus by creating regular and consistent prosocial and active recreation opportunities through the construction of a new pickleball court in an accessible area downtown.
• Grand River Arts Council, Lemmon – The Palace Parklet project will provide a vibrant gathering space for arts-based programming, a ramp for accessibility to the theater and benches for older adults who use the downtown sidewalks for their daily outdoor walks.
• Community Advancement for Roslyn and Eden (Care), Roslyn – The Veterans Memorial Park of Roslyn will honor veterans and be inclusive of the area’s heritage. This project will provide an ADA accessible gazebo, pathways and benches frequented by older adults while enhancing green space.
• Gettysburg-Whitlock Bay Development Corporation, Gettysburg – This project will allow seasoned gardeners to share and continue their love of supplying vegetables for family and friends, while beautifying an empty lot.

In addition, one project in South Dakota received a demonstration grant through the Community Challenge program:

• Downtown Sioux Falls – the Lively & Beautiful Streets project will focus on downtown streets to create an environment where people can experience slower traffic, safer crossings and a more hospitable pedestrian realm – resulting in the ability to more easily connect physically and socially within the neighborhood.

“Whether it’s helping people access high speed internet or protecting public transit riders from rain and snow, small community projects can have a big impact on people of all ages,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer. “AARP Community Challenge grantees make our commitment to creating better places to live a reality through quick, innovative solutions.”

AARP Community Challenge grant projects will be funded in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. True to the program’s quick-action nature, projects must be completed by December 15, 2024. View the full list of grantees and their project descriptions at aarp.org/communitychallenge and learn more about AARP’s livable communities work at aarp.org/livable.