Suburban Atlanta's Exclusive Utopia

Serenbe, named by founder and developer Steve Nygren as a mix of "serene" and "be", is a growing utopian, exclusive oasis of suburbia nestled in Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia, near Atlanta.

Nyren was inspired by New Urbanist design principles including walkability, mixed use development, and public green spaces. University of Toronto geography professor Deborah Cowen points out a difference between Serenbe and previous suburban utopias to CityLab, “We’re in such a fraught urban moment, whether we’re looking at the environment, extreme concentrations of wealth, [global] corporatization, or deepening racial segregation. It’s a question of the defensive futures being built by those who can afford to escape.”  

The community is indeed a showpiece of certain progressive urban ideas—its comparatively dense building stock, energy-efficient homes, and emphasis on local agriculture certainly distinguish it from Atlantan suburbs like Marietta or Stone Mountain. But it largely leaves untouched the broader issues that are at the center of the contemporary urban and ecological crisis, including racial justice, income equality, and the severe lack of affordable housing.

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