Eco Friendly Real Estate Blog: North Carolina: Gerton: Living Green In Greater Asheville

 Asheville Area Eco-Friendly Communities:Here is a series of links to posts I have done on one of my favorite areas around Asheville, and the possibilities for those of you who love the idea of living in a neighborly community where folks can share organic gardens, produce...and yes, even heirloom apples!

Second- Vacation Homes Go Year-Round- Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideFourth stop on the Asheville area Second and Vacation Homes Tour- Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community Hickory Nut Forest is so compelling that your second or vacationhome soon may become your year-round abode. If you are seeking waterfalls you...

Green Real Estate Asheville: Interview with Eco Developer- Hickory Nut Forest Mountain Community Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideI had the pleasure of sitting down with John Myers and Jane Lawson the developers of the Hickory Nut Forest GREEN/conservation community near Asheville, NC not long ago. We talked about what it takes to create such a community- their philosophy and...

 1 Way to Recognize an EcoVillage -Asheville's Hickory Nut Forest Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideAutumn is on the way with gifts of Carolina Blue skies, and all the colors that border it. (see photo taken at Hickory Nut Forest eco community) This is an excellent time of year to tour the Asheville area and to familiarize yourself with what we...

Eco-Community NC & Acres and Acres of Land Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideDateline Asheville, North Carolina, October, 2009 News and Views from "GREEN-O-Lina"     The Eco-Community & Conservation Land THIS WEEK I had the good fortune to hike the sunny trails leading from an amazing eco-friendly community just minutes...

Hickory Nut Forest An Outstanding Eco-Friendly Community Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideHickory Nut Forest An Outstanding Asheville Area Eco Community One of my favorite eco communities in the Asheville area (and please note, Asheville is the  "hub' of green and sustainable development) is Hickory Nut Forest. Numerous eco...

Sustainable Community~ Asheville's Eco-Jewel~ Hickory Nut Forest Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideNot long ago I was contacted via ActiveRain about a post I had done -part of an on-going series called " Asheville- Picnics and Day Trips" - about Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community. I responded with delight for it is apple blossom time at Hickory...

Asheville "Scene " Around Town Photo Series -The Path Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENside The Path "At first it seemed like any other path you might come across... but this one was unlike any other. The moment I stepped foot on it, I had a sense of tranquility that...

Asheville NC Relocation Tour: Eco-Communities Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideIf considering Asheville NC Relocation is on your agenda don't miss a tour of our area Eco Communities! Asheville is a "hub' of green and sustainable development, and therefo re it is an attractive place for individuals and families looking for...

Asheville's Eco Communities: Hickory Nut Forest and RELOCATING to Asheville NC Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideAsheville's Eco Communities: Hickory Nut Forest (series). Hickory Nut Forest Eco Community IN CONTEXT... It's all about "H E ART' Just a few posts back, Jeff asked me to expand on what intrigues me about Hickory Nut Forest, and Asheville...

Asheville NC Relocation `Asheville's Eco Communities (series) : Hickory Nut Forest Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideAsheville's Eco Communities: Hickory Nut Forest. Now, I said that there are a number of very worthy eco-communities in and around Asheville. So you may wonder why I'm taking you to Hickory Nut Forest first... Here are 7 red-hot and GREEN reasons:..

Asheville NC Relocation - Area Eco Communities Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideOne of the most exciting factors to consider if Asheville NC Relocation is on your agenda is our Area Eco Communities! A "hub' of green and sustainable development, Asheville is an attractive place to relocate. And whether it is in an urban...

Baby Boomer and Nature Lover? Turn your 1031 into Eco-Friendly Creative Retirement Living- Asheville NC's Hickory Nut Forest. Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENside Looking for Creative Retirement? Baby Boomer and Nature Lover? If you are "at one" with nature- the woods, the hills, the shades of leaves of Autumn, the waterfalls- now could be just the right time to RELAX and turn your 1031 into Eco-Friendly...

Hickory Nut Forest Gerton N.C Evolving Eco-Community Asheville NC Real Estate- Homes on the GREENsideHickory Nut Forest in Gerton N. C. is an evolving eco-community and conservation neighborhood This eco-community - is an easy drive from Asheville's cultural amenities, arts, music and delicious cuisine, as well as excellent healthcare all...

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Fourth stop on the  Asheville area Second and Vacation Homes Tour-Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community.

Hickory Nut Forest is so compelling that your second or vacationhome soon may become your year-round abode.

If you are seeking waterfalls, you have come to the right place. Last count, there were fifteen(15) on the forever wild land that adjoins Hickory Nut Forest-

Not to mention the vineyard, organic gardens, heirloom apple orchard. Oh My!

 Points to keep in mind as we head out on this sunny day to look at this carefully developed community are: a) proximity to Asheville, ) the exterior and/or interior allure for a second or vacation home,  and c) zoning/deed restrictions. 

Asheville has what it takes in terms of investing in a Second and/or Vacation home: An alluring, eco-friendly, and welcoming setting, things to do and see, cultural amenities, and wonderful locally-grown and harvested organic food and some of the most interesting people you may ever meet.  

Also...  Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community has what it takes as far as reasonable proximity to both Asheville and Hendersonville, NC.

Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community is located within miles beyond Drovers Road Preserve , the subject of our third tour, and within about a 37-minute drive in to  Asheville's entertainment offerings, medical facilities and the Biltmore Estate. 

Even closer you will find lakes, waterfalls, hiking, fishing and an excellent CSA  from which to gather organic produce. 

As we traverse the community note that the philosophical foundation rests on maintaining a healthy, diverse ecosystem. Too, this is place where people can choose to live among caring neighbors, sharing their inspiration and enthusiasm. 

Hickory Nut Forest is a sustainable community. The goal is to be more than simply "energy efficient"- the goal here is to be a "net zero energy" community that powers the homes by unleashing the renewable energy inherent in the land, the water, the wind and the sun. This is another benefit for those who live here-in both cost savings and independence.

More Features and Benefits: Outdoor Activities: Hiking trails wind up Little Bearwallow Mountain and down to beautiful waterfalls on Hickory Nut Creek. Another 5 miles of trails will connect to the Florence Preserve and eventually are planned to extend the length of the gorge to the new Hickory Nut Gorge State Park at Lake Lure. With over six miles of hiking trails, residents and visitors can enjoy the adjoining 800 acres in both Little Bearwallow Mountain and Florence Nature Preserves. Just down the gorge are another 3500 acres of waterfalls and cliffs at Chimney Rock State Park. 

Being a part of a thoughtfully-planned neighborhood, where green-built homes are designed with natural, non-toxic materials to be safe, healthy, and energy efficient, built to the highest green building standards has enormous dividends. 

Forever wild, protected land surrounds Hickory Nut Forest. Covenants on the lots ensure that homes will blend naturally into the forest and special wild places for all to enjoy: the cascading streams, tumbling waterfalls, sheer cliffs, and distant vistas. 

Whether it is a WNC Healthy-Built ®Home or  a LEED® Certified home. Second and Vacation home seekers can expect green excellence in this Asheville area community. In fact, only  seventeen (17) homesites  with more than half sold. Green-built homes are now under construction.

 Seeking a natural lifestyle where mountain views, nature trails, and pristine streams invite you to relax and enjoy the quality of life? Ccome with me on my next tour of Hickory Nut Forest.

Want to build a Second or Vacation home and possibly place it on a vacation rental program? Please check out the covenants  

We are in the business of finding incredible Land and Green-Built Homes for our clients, whether that be Homes and Land for Sale by Owner or listed on the MLS.  So let me know what you think.

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(*)/'(*)    ..........      ............ " We are on the roll  for  sustainable  innovation."  © 2010. Asheville NC Real Estate     Unauthorized reproduction of any information on this site is a violation of existing copyright laws. All rights reserved. Second and Vacation Homes Asheville Tour: Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community

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I had the pleasure of sitting down with John Myers and Jane Lawson the developers of the Hickory Nut Forest GREEN/conservation community near Asheville, NC not long ago. We talked about what it takes to create such a community- their philosophy and how they designed and developed the land. Here is a segment of our conversation.

HOW ONE COUPLE ENVISIONED AND REALIZED THEIR DREAM OF AN ECO-FRIENDLY  MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY

Q. How long has it taken to create the Hickory Nut Forest eco-community?

A. We have been involved in the process of creating community for nearly five years. It has been an amazing journey that has taken on a life of its own. We started out with a vision to conserve some beautiful land in the mountains of North Carolina.

We wanted to be stewards of this sacred place with its amazing forests, waterfalls, living plants and animals. As we have come to know the land intimately, we feel guided to keep expanding our vision.

Q How have you expanded on your vision to conserve this gorgeous land in the mountains of North Carolina?

We created homesites for up to 34 green-built homes, added an organic apple orchard and heirloom vineyard, placed a conservation easement on the mountain and built miles of hiking trails.

(photo shows John and Jane at one of the many waterfalls on the property the are developing near Chimney Rock just outside of Asheville, NC. )

 Q How do you see the growth of Hickory Nut Forest into the mature "Green Community" you envision, and will it be  a "Private Mountain Community"?

A. As new people have arrived, they have brought their enthusiasm and dreams to the community. [One of the first to arrive] Ryan was inspired to develop a community garden and with student interns created a veggie patch, an herb circle, mushroom logs, and added beehives and free-range chickens. 

Folks wanted to have a gathering place, so we started building a community center at the ruins of an old gristmill. This vision has grown into creating Laughing Waters, a retreat site for year-round classes, workshops and student internships that we hope to have open by spring. 

We are allowing the community to grow slowly and naturally through sharing this magical place with all who come to visit. Our free monthly events have included a bluegrass concert, apple fests, hikes, herb walks, bonfire/potlucks and kids' educational programs. People have initially come for a visit and then decided to live here.

Q. What is your guiding principle or intention? 

From the beginning our guiding intention has been simply to approach everything and everyone with love and respect: our neighbors, all the people working on various projects, our visitors, the land and the water, the plants and animals, and each other. We feel such a powerful healing energy from this land. Our role is simply to make it possible for people to come here and experience it for themselves. 

FURTHER READING on how to recognize an eco-friendly development

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(*)/'(*)    ..........      ............to keep on rolling into the sustainable  world you can create today and tomorrow!. .........................    .............with OBJECTIVE FIDUCIARY COUNSEL &. ECO STEWARDS' LEARNING TOURS.Serving Asheville's Eco-Friendly-Home, Relocation LAND Clients..

On the GO 4 Sustainability:  "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants!  Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved
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Dateline Asheville, North Carolina, October, 2009
News and Views from "GREEN-O-Lina"   

The Eco-Community & Conservation Land

THIS WEEK I had the good fortune to hike the sunny trails leading from an amazing eco-friendly community just minutes from downtown Asheville. This model for sustainable innovation, Hickory Nut Forest is one of the first ECO developments in the USA to combine wide-ranging land conservation with an eco-friendly community of green-built  homes, to be powered by renewable energy -(wind power, hydropower , geothermal) - to create  a  "net-zero-energy community". Living in this conservation neighborhood means enjoying the forever-wild mountain forests, soaring cliffs and pristine, cascading streams, out your back door. You can walk for miles in the serenity of nature.  
 
Hiking trails lead conveniently from the building sites into 800+ acres of nature preserve lands  with waterfalls, streams, cliffs and mountaintop vistas. And, here a learning/teaching and community center is taking shape. Based on the model of the grist mill that once stood here, the building is being "built green" and features wood harvested with TLC from the site. (see video)

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(*)/'(*)    ..........      ............to keep on rolling into the sustainable  world you can create today and tomorrow!. .........................    .............with OBJECTIVE FIDUCIARY COUNSEL and ECO STEWARDS' LEARNING TOURS. Serving Asheville's Relocationand  LAND Clients..

On the GO 4 Sustainability:  "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants!  Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved

Hickory Nut Forest An Outstanding Asheville Area Eco Community

One of my favorite eco communities in the Asheville area (and please note, Asheville is the  "hub' of green and sustainable development) is Hickory Nut Forest.Numerous eco-communities are popping up in and around Asheville, but Hickory Nut Forest is demonstrating how to go about creating an eco--community. This video shows how folks got together to build a community center. (see video).

THIS evolving "green" community and conservation neighborhood is surrounded on three sides by over 800 acres of conservation land , so from the community center, visitors and residents can hike out on one of the well-tended trails leading to those 800 + acres and to the adjoining 250 acres. Hickory Nut Forest's community/retreat/teaching/learning center represents a "shade of green" having to do with sustainability from the "social dimension" perspective: Peace, security, social justice --Human settlements and Human relationship to nature.

EXAMPLE: I was so excited to be able to WATCH how the construction of the new community building happens! ( see video) If you are interested in the "social dimension" of eco-friendly development, be sure to check out the video. There also are aspects of green building that will be a part of this work: using the giant poplar from our land to hold up the house, solar and microhydro for heating and electric, sprayed insulation, south facing orientation, metal roofing, energystar appliances, protection of the surrounding trees, interior air quality, re-using their own wood for interior walls...for example

Not long ago I was contacted via Active Rainabout a post I had done -part of an on-going series called 
" Asheville- Picnics and Day Trips" - about Hickory Nut Forest Eco-Community.  I responded with delight for it is apple blossom time at Hickory Nut Forest, and we had taken some amazing photos to share.
(see photo)

"We share an interest in self-sustaining communities," I enthused... ."

and was happy to provide information. Possibly you. have seen posts (see a few of those links below) about Hickory Nut Forest.

I am passionate about the concept of eco-friendly developmentand how this has played out in excellent attention to detail for this eco-community." 

... what stage Hickory Nut Forest is in development... 

In terms of land planning and execution...the community is a good way along in terms of planning and creation of the "foundation" for the community....

 1)  The conservation easement and deed restrictions that protect the integrity of the land are in place-the 25 AC that is adjacent to the 250 AC that is also adjacent to hundreds and hundreds of acres of conservation partners' lands-
2) the site evaluationand planning has been done by Equinox Environmental eco-sensitive landscape architects, the biological survey is complete and has been respected

3) the road in is in (top quality-see photo) and carefully constructed

4) the sites are designed for beauty and solar gain
5) the trails leading from the sites to the larger acreage are in process and well under way...
6) about half the building sites are sold and
7)the first home to be built is due this year

.....about a land map....

A survey of Hickory Nut Forest is conservation neighborhood  as well as a map of the entire 275 AC, a  topographical map, and a general map of the area to see where Hickory Nut Forest is located and how far it is from Asheville is available. (see links below)

.... about lots---the siting, the  sizes and costs...

Each lot at  Hickory Nut Forest seems to have its own personality.  Some of the lots overlook the Hickory Nut Creek, some are adjacent to trails leading to vast conservation acreage....wells and septic systems are needed, but there has not been a problem with perc tests...

The size of the lots seems( to me) not to be too much of a factor when taking into consideration the larger picture...the heirloom apple orchard, the sustainably managed vegetable gardens on their way...and the other amenities of this life-affirming community.  Lots range in price from $150,000  (but two people could share a lot and build a home and "guest home" and thus defray the cost)  to about $250,000.

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__~o
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(*)/'(*)    ..........      ............to keep on rolling into the sustainable  world you can create today and tomorrow!. .........................    .............with

OBJECTIVE FIDUCIARY COUNSEL from Eco Certified ©Real Estate Consultants. Contact janeAnne@janeAnne.com or  give a call at 828-255-1082 . Design your dream. Give us your checklist .

ECO STEWARDS' LEARNING TOURS. Curious about sustainable GREEN real estate possibilities ?  Register for the Eco Stewards' Learning Tours.

The ECO Certified ® Real Estate Consultants at The ECO Steward Real Estate Firm  specialize in working with eco-developers and LAND for sale in the Greater Asheville, North Carolina area. We are excited about value-added, ECO-friendly properties, and focus on positive futures. Our real estate practice inspires property investments for wealth of the generous kind.

Sustainable Community~ Asheville's Eco-Jewel~ Hickory Nut Forest. Asheville "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants!  Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved
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