Roughly 30 minutes from the world’s busiest airport, a fresh take on upscale, mixed-use development is beckoning buyers to “live deliciously” with a “food-first” lifestyle while being connected to nature. 

Officials with a $103-million project called Ceres—named for the Roman goddess of agriculture and the harvest—held a ceremonial groundbreaking Friday at the 8780 Atlanta Newnan Road property in Chattahoochee Hills, in Atlanta's southwestern suburbs. [UPDATE: 1:02 a.m., April 21: Project reps send an update the expected development cost is $188 million, and the official name is CERES Chatt Hills.] 

The site in question is 94 acres of woodlands today. It's set directly across the road from the eastern fringes of Serenbe, a globally recognized community with a focus on agriculture and wellness that started coming together 21 years ago. The two projects are not affiliated with one another. 

Zoning requires that 70 percent of the property be left in its natural state, according to Ceres reps. 

Overview of the Ceres central green and housing types planned in Chattahoochee Hills. Courtesy of Ceres

Courtesy of Ceres

Inspired by food-driven “gourmet cluster” towns like the United Kingdom’s Malton, Ceres’ plans call for integrating a food-and-beverage retail district alongside orchards, gardens, a chef incubator, and a cookery school. The idea is to rethink how new communities are valued and designed for wellness-conscious people who covet immediate access to fresh foods—but don’t want to live on a farm. 

“Our project is positioned around food as the foundation for healthy, sustainable, and connected living,” a Ceres rep wrote via email to Urbanize Atlanta. “Ceres is elegant design and generous hospitality—a jewel box in the woods with delicious living right outside your door.”

That all will come at a price, as a typical listing at Ceres will ask $1.7 million for 2,600 square feet, on average. 

Perspectives on Ceres' architecture, per renderings on the project website. Cereschatthills.com/WGL Partners

Two-phase site plan in store for 94 acres in Chattahoochee Hills, per project leaders. Courtesy of Ceres

The female-led development is being spearheaded by Dominque Love, WGL Partners founder, who in 2010 also founded the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, alongside Ellen Buckley, who as CEO of Prospera Real Estate Collective has completed $16 billion in projects, per Ceres officials. 

The Ceres roster of residential architects includes Elizabeth Graziolo (New York-based Yellow House Architects), and Linda MacArthur and Amanda Orr, both of the latter heading eponymous, Atlanta-based firms. 

Project officials tell Urbanize site work at Ceres is scheduled to start in May, followed by vertical construction in December or January. First deliveries are expected in late 2027 or early 2028. 

Overall, the two-phase project calls for: 75 townhomes and single-family homes; 40 for-sale condos; 50,000 square feet of commercial space, and an inn with 60 to 80 keys and a private members club. Amenities are set to include a pool, pickleball and tennis, and a system of walking trails. 

Pricing starts at $900,000 for what’s called Terrace Homes, spanning 1,500 to 2,200 square feet. 

Asking prices climb to north of $3 million for Hill Homes (5,000 to 5,500 square feet) and Park Estates (4,000 to 4,500). 

The phase-two hospitality district is scheduled to break ground in 2028, per marketing materials. 

We reached out to Serenbe officials for comment last week but hadn’t received a response as of press time. 

The Ceres development team also includes ai3 (architecture), Ardurra (engineering), TSW (land planning and landscape), Compass (sales), and Vincent Longo Custom Builders. 

Find more context and visuals in the gallery above. 

The Ceres location in Atlanta's southwestern suburbs. Google Maps

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• Photo tour: Serenbe at 20, a pricey utopia or GA's sweetest small town? (Urbanize Atlanta)