A 10-mile hiking trail sculpted atop Jasper Mountain lines the Cumberland Plateau. Below, hundreds of square miles of valley paint the landscape. The trail lines the perimeter of Jasper Highlands, serving as a focal point for the retirement community with thousands of acres of green space and trails. Along one of the path's many trailheads, a 110-foot waterfall carves the rockface below one of the property's prime lots, set aside as a area for residents and their families to gather and enjoy the mountain air of East Tennessee.
More than half of the 9,000-acre private Marion County community launched in 2012 has been set aside for preservation or will not be developed. Roughly 150 people live in the community, but 600 lots have been sold as houses continue to be built. Prime lots with spectacular views and convenient access have been set aside for community spaces.
Jasper Highlands is meeting a shift in the retirement community industry. Instead of golf courses and clubhouses, retirees are asking for walking trails, healthy living and a sense of community.
"As times are changing with retirees, these natural areas are becoming the No. 1 amenities," Jasper Highlands President Dane Bradshaw said.
Trails, swimming, wellness activities and cycling are now more important to retirees than golf, according to data from ideal-Living. The North Carolina-based magazine has been keeping data on retirees for more than 30 years. The company has noticed the shift steadily taking place for close to 10 years.
Retirees moving to the Southeast are doing so because they want outdoors-focused living in a temperate climate, the magazine found.
"It's really more about wellness and access to health care," company director of sales Daniel Keir said. "There's plenty of golf around. It's about nature, wellness and general better health."
The company began noticing a shift during the Great Recession, Keir said. Fewer retirees were willing to pay for the extra costs associated with a golf course community. They still liked to golf, he said, but retirees were content living close to a course they could visit a couple of times a month rather than on a course they visited almost daily.
As the recession ended, the trend continued. A new group of boomers were reaching retirement age and were more interested in wellness and natural amenities. National retirement organizations began noting the shift. Organizations like AARP and others began marketing outdoor living to seniors. Retirement communities across the U.S. have begun focusing on outdoor living and advertising hiking trails and green spaces.
Since the recession, new communities highlight green space and natural beauty. South Carolina's Carillon at The Ponds began building homes in 2013. Its top listed amenities are its 1,100-acre preserve, unspoiled woodlands and 21 miles of picturesque nature trails.
That's what Jasper Highlands and other communities have attempted to capitalize on.
Developer John "Thunder" Thornton said his community is attempting to keep its natural feel. The trees that have been removed to make room for houses are being repurposed on the property as decks and for other uses. The lots that could fetch top dollar have turned into a park, a trailhead and an open air pavilion with with televisions, chairs, mountain views and eating areas.
Thornton, a significant University of Tennessee donor, named the pavilion - which sits at the summit - Pat's Summit, after the legendary Lady Vols basketball coach.
"It's just a magnificent core," he said. "There was no question we could sell those lots for a million-plus, but if we gave it to [all the] property owners then everyone who doesn't have a mountain view or river view can come enjoy this every morning or every afternoon if they want to."
Decisions like that have been one of the main draws for retirees living in the community.
Resident RD Johnson moved to Jasper Highlands with his wife, Anna, from Kansas City, Missouri. The two owned a brewery for more than 20 years before selling that business and moving to East Tennessee. They like to go for long walks, ride their bikes and take photos of the nature surrounding them.
"I think that might be becoming a trend more and more," RD Johnson said. "The people at this point in time who are looking to retire have been caught up in a very busy lifestyle."
Contact staff writer Mark Pace at mpace@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659. Follow him on Twitter @themarkpace and on Facebook at ChattanoogaOutdoorsTFP.