Building A Community From Scratch
10/14/19 • 58 min
Steve Nygren dives into how to actually begin the build process when you're starting from nothing. He knew he had to save his backyard and had worked with his neighbors to go to the state to make the laws work for Chattahoochee Hills, but he didn't yet know he was going to create the Serenbe community. That realization was never a moment, but rather over a gradual course of time.
Questions Answered
How do you build a neighborhood from scratch?
If not you, who? If not now, when?
When did Steve Nygren realize he was actually going to build a neighborhood to save his land?
How did Phill Tabb get involved in Serenbe?
Did Steve get to include everything he wanted to in Serenbe?
Why were granite curbs so difficult to get?
What goes into putting something like power into a new community?
How do we reduce our energy demands so we're not using up our resources?
How does EarthCraft differ from LEED certification?
What is a Gabion bridge?
Why do third-world countries have more environmentally-friendly stormwater routing than the United States?
Where does stormwater go?
People + Organizations Mentioned
Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!
Serenbe Stories is a podcast about making an impact, building a better life, and the extraordinary power of nature and community. Follow Serenbe on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Steve Nygren dives into how to actually begin the build process when you're starting from nothing. He knew he had to save his backyard and had worked with his neighbors to go to the state to make the laws work for Chattahoochee Hills, but he didn't yet know he was going to create the Serenbe community. That realization was never a moment, but rather over a gradual course of time.
Questions Answered
How do you build a neighborhood from scratch?
If not you, who? If not now, when?
When did Steve Nygren realize he was actually going to build a neighborhood to save his land?
How did Phill Tabb get involved in Serenbe?
Did Steve get to include everything he wanted to in Serenbe?
Why were granite curbs so difficult to get?
What goes into putting something like power into a new community?
How do we reduce our energy demands so we're not using up our resources?
How does EarthCraft differ from LEED certification?
What is a Gabion bridge?
Why do third-world countries have more environmentally-friendly stormwater routing than the United States?
Where does stormwater go?
People + Organizations Mentioned
Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!
Serenbe Stories is a podcast about making an impact, building a better life, and the extraordinary power of nature and community. Follow Serenbe on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Previous Episode
Saving Nature: Balancing Development & Conservation
After Steve Nygren brought small and large land owners in Chattahoochee Hills on board his development plan, it was time to take the project to the state. Three state foundations and a few private citizens had pledged money to invest in the project, and Governor Barnes was ready to push legislation through to allow Chattahoochee Hill Country to change land rights in the region. When Barnes didn't get re-elected, most of these investments disappeared. One person stayed in, and that money was used to buy the first TDRs from two land owners.
This was only the beginning of Steve’s journey through state government bureaucracy. Each time he wanted to incorporate an environmentally-friendly option, be it for wastewater treatment or putting in roads, he encountered pushback from the various state departments that oversee them. Steve continued to ask questions and pursue what he knew to be right.
Questions Answered
What were the steps you had to take to start building Serenbe?
What are land rights?
How do transfer development rights work?
What is the most photographed place in Serenbe?
Why are chain link fences always around conventional waste water treatment facilities?
Why should we choose to build in a new way?
How is balanced development possible?
Why are government departments so siloed?
Why does Serenbe have unique streetlamps?
People + Organizations Mentioned
Chattahoochee Hill Country Conservancy
Environmental Protection Division
Georgia Association of County Commissioners
Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!
Serenbe Stories is a podcast about making an impact, building a better life, and the extraordinary power of nature and community. Follow Serenbe on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Next Episode
Placemaking In The Woods
In this episode, Steve Nygren talks about how he took his successful hospitality career and applied it to building a community from scratch. They were creating places through hospitality, and Steve knew when building Serenbe that they needed to have a place for people to gather around food. That first place was the Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop.
Questions Answered
What is placemaking?
How does scale and massing in architecture contribute to the authentic feel of a place?
What is a condition sheet?
What is a thornbird transect?
How does Serenbe differ from typical New Urbanism?
Why did Steve Nygren design the streets after omegas?
Why does traditional Southern architecture incorporate porches?
How do porches in Serenbe encourage community engagement?
How can a mail house add to a sense of place?
Where are all the trash cans and mail boxes in Serenbe?
Why don't you see front lawns in Serenbe?
Where can you eat in Serenbe (besides the restaurants)?
What are Serenbe's home design guidelines?
People + Organizations Mentioned
Mack Scogin Merrill Elam Architects
Step off the treadmill of life and book a stay at the Inn at Serenbe. Use code Serenbe Stories when you book online or over the phone and receive 10% off your stay!
Serenbe Stories is a podcast about making an impact, building a better life, and the extraordinary power of nature and community. Follow Serenbe on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Serenbe Stories - Building A Community From Scratch
Transcript
Monica Olsen (1s):
Hey guys, it's Monica here. I wanted to tell you about a new podcast that I've started with my very good friend, Jennifer Walsh called Biophilic Solutions. Our last season of Serenbe Stories, Building a Biophilic Movement, was so popular that we decided to dedicate an entire podcast to it. Every other week Jennifer and I will sit down with leaders in the growing field of biophilia. We'll talk about local and global solutions to help nurture the living social and economic
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