The settlement of Serenbe is found in the heart of Chattahoochee Hill Country. This 40,000 acres of rural Georgia is about the size of Napa Valley, and is one of the last undeveloped stretches of land in the Atlanta area. The founders of Serenbe realize that their largely untouched 900 acres presented a short window of opportunity for creating a community in a new and better way.

How? By protecting this land from the typical growth patterns of urban sprawl. By merging ecologically sound sustainability principles with the design philosophies of walking neighborhoods made up of both homes and shops. By building villages and hamlets for single people, families and empty nesters of a wide range of economic and cultural diversity.

Serenbe: Surrounded by Smart Growth The Chattahoochee Hill Country, which encompasses Serenbe, has created a blueprint for preservation-minded growth. Click to enlarge.

And by creating real community, where people are drawn together over gardening, over cooking, over books, over art, over ideas, and yes, even over back fences.

They say that if you want to change the world, you should start in your own backyard. If that’s so, then Serenbe is quite a beginning. Or maybe a respectful nod to times gone by.