This morning I received a very long inquiry filled with all the right questions.  I thought my answers might be useful to anyone interested in the Village.  Here is my response:

Dear Shirley,

It sounds like you may be exactly the kind of neighbors I would like to live near.  I will try to answer with some of the depth of detail you gave me.

As you probably read on my website, I am just now breaking ground on my own home in the Village.  As soon as it is finished I will be moving my family here permanently from the Louisville Kentucky area.  I have 5 kids with one still at home who is 14.  She will be attending St. Andrews.  It is a GREAT school.  Although we are in a remote, naturally beautiful area, we are blessed with the presence of St. Andrews and the University of the South, both outstanding liberal arts schools.  Even if your kids do not choose to attend one of these, you will enjoy the cultural benefits of great orchestras, plays, lectures, poets and art that this brings to the mountain.

If you like four very moderate seasons, the weather here could not be better.  We are about a thousand feet higher than Chattanooga which lowers the humidity and the temperature about 10 degrees in the summer.  We have frequent breezes, but no hurricanes.

The main thing that distinguishes the Village on Sewanee Creek from other developments on the mountain (and by the way, they are all drop-dead gorgeous) is the sense of community we are building here.  I guess that stems partly from the fact that I have chosen to live here and I love people.  So I am putting in the kinds of amenities that bring people together as friends and I am committed to seeing that they are actively used.  You will find that the people who have lived here for generations are some of the finest people on earth.  Hunting, fishing and outdoor life are the primary modes of recreation.  Your husband would love that.  I am putting about 500 acres in the canyon below the village into a permanent natural preserve so it will always be pristine and beautiful.  There are plenty of churches of every kind.  I am personally very active and serve in my own church.

Land prices in Tennessee are some of the lowest in the nation for comparably beautiful land, but beginning to rise as this area has been discovered, but as the amphitheater and other amenities are completed, the Village will become an even more highly sought after place to live and lot values will increase.  I purchased this 700+ acre tract and began working on it only about 6 months ago.  Of the 15 lots available in phase 1A, six are already sold.  Also, Phase 1A is the most affordable section as the lots are smaller (about 2 acres) and not directly on the bluff, although some have breathtaking views of the canyons.  Future phases will be 5+ acres.

Your daughter is right.  If you come for a visit be prepared to be infected with the urge to move immediately.   I was.

All the best,
Grant Miller