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TEMPE, AZ (AZFamily) — Tempe is developing a new park for people with dementia, which the city is calling the “first-of-its-kind” in the country.
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Tempe’s “Dementia and Age Friendly Park” will be within Kiwanis Park with Arizona’s aging residents — who make up nearly a quarter of the state’s population — in mind, as well as the thousands in the state living with memory loss.
The park is currently in the design phase, and the timeline of when it will open is still to be determined, according to city officials.
An initial rendering for the park includes railings for stability, concrete walking paths with stripes to help visitors find their way, and fencing.
Plans also feature ample shady areas, porch swings, art sculptures, and several gardens, including one for games and another to plant vegetables.
Tempe Mayor Corey Woods said the idea for the project came from residents, who raised the idea of a safe outdoor space for community members living with dementia.
“It really is a first-of-its-kind park — not only in Arizona, but, frankly, across the country,” he said, adding that the park’s central location will allow it to be more accessible to residents.
The park will also be hugely beneficial for caretakers whose role can be demanding and isolating.
The park will be a “thoughtfully-designed place” where those living with dementia “can safely enjoy the outdoors while their caregivers have a chance to rest, breathe and simply enjoy being with the person they love,” said Tempe councilmemberDoreen Garlid, who was the former caretaker of her late father who had dementia.
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Tempe councilmember Nikki Amberg said the project is “deeply personal” for her and that such a park would’ve been a “safe haven” for her mother, who was the primary caretaker of her late father who had Alzheimer’s.
“She was stuck at home, because I think she felt that was only the safe space that she had really to care of him,” Amberg told Arizona’s Family, adding, “So this kind of a park would have been so wonderful for her; it would have been able to get her and my dad out of the house.”
Amberg, who is leading the design efforts with Garlid, said the city plans to get public feedback about what to include.
The park will be situated off of All-America Way and southwest of Kiwanis Lake.
Funding for the park will come through a combination of public and private donations, grant funding, and city funds.
The local architect group Architekton has also donated the design costs. To further offset costs, the city is partnering with Tempe Diablos Charities to soon accept public donations.
In Arizona, there are about 152,000 people aged 65 and older who are living with Alzheimer’s, according to the most recent data from the Alzheimer’s Association. About 15% of people in Arizona aged 45 and older have subjective cognitive decline.
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