Episode 15:8 Steve Nygren on Serenbe’s Free Range Kids and Uncaged Elders

The founder and CEO of Serenbe talks about the importance of fresh air, farm to table food, art, and education, and the community’s 20-year progression from breaking ground in 2004 to 500 houses, five restaurants, 35 businesses, and development of a leading-edge aging in place campus.

About Steve

Steve Nygren began his career in the hospitality industry, eventually starting a restaurant corporation that grew to 36 restaurants. In 1994, he and his wife Marie retired to a farm outside Atlanta, with their three daughters. Six years later, he became concerned about urban sprawl invading their adopted country paradise and in 2000 led the effort to create the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance to bring together landowners, developers, and conservationists to find a mutually agreed upon solution for balanced growth. Through two years, a land use plan was adopted to preserve 70% of the 40,000 acres on the edge of Atlanta while providing 20% more housing that traditional suburban sprawl yield.

 In 2004, the Nygren’s began the development of Serenbe interlacing agriculture with a range of housing choices mixed with shops, galleries, restaurants and a full-service Inn. The result is reminiscent of century old communities where many of your needs are within a walkable distance and neighbors know each other. Today, Steve serves as the CEO of Serenbe and lives in the community full-time.

Key Takeaways

• Serenbe contributes over a million dollars for art and environmental programming annually. Zoning requires 70% of the land to remain agricultural.
• Serenbe’s Montessori-based school has grown from a resident’s basement to the completion of a 100% geothermal multimillion-dollar campus with the first Tesla solar shingles on any commercial building in the world and they will be totally self-sustaining from an energy standpoint.
• The new aging in place campus, breaking ground in February 2024, is based on The Hogeweyk® dementia village in the Netherlands. There will be no gates or locks, no age restrictions, multigenerational living, and care based on needs and lifestyle.
• Feasibility studies are based on looking through the rearview mirror. There are a lot of roadblocks to cutting new territory—many developers do not have the passion, patience, or ability.