One of my hubby's co-workers lives in a community where they share an air park. The owners of the homes jointly share a landing strip and each home has hangar facilities for their common interest in their own private air planes. I believe the sub division only has around 50 homes and as soon as one goes on the market, it's sold quickly. It's a lot different then a commune, you're an independent homeowner but you do have to support the common grounds and abide by their rules.

I live on a lake, with an HOA -- they govern use of the lake, what type of boat you can use, what kind of dock can be built, they also govern all other common areas such as pool and tennis courts. I think living in a community such as the one you propose, you'll be governed much the same. I would assume you may even be limited on what you can plant, how many horses you can own etc.

It seems to me that people interested in horses and organic farming are going to want to live on farms. I know of a community in central Virginia with an interest in building in harmony with the environment.

graywings,will you share the name of the community?
and i realise i will have to make some sacrifices in order to get what i want. the challenge will be finding the community with the least onerous(to me,anyway) restrictions. for instance,,i'm a member of a club which owns 3300 acres of adirondack forest. there is a thriving community of fishermen and hunters,no other horse owners. that,plus the fact that the homes are limited in size are my sticky points with this club for retirement. but as a fisherman it's a great community. i want to find more of a farming lifestyle. my brother suggest i join the mennonites!

keep looking & keep asking .. I seem to remember an equestrian community but can't think of where.

I remember there were individual homes and had stables, paddock and pastures in common. Being a small farm onwer, I thought it was an intruiging idea, as long as everyone did their part. Owning a farm, animals and outbuildings entails a lot of continual upkeep. The thought of sharing that seemed like a good idea.

fallingwaters - I don't know the name of the community, a friend of a friend lives there. I will ask and get back to you. It is outside of Charlottesville, VA.

Have you ever had horses? Do you know how expensive they are to keep? Do you do your own gardening now and do you know how expensive organic gardening is? You mentioned a age difference and will your husband accept a change of life style? These are things to consider.

yup,i'm a current full time servant to four equines at the moment. we've been raising our own food for years,livestock and crops and want the ability to continue as we age. i happen to very interested in farm to market specialty foods and animal husbandry. hubby wants to putter around the farm,so we're thinking of a commnuity where there is a mix of ages,where we can pursue our farm business with support,if that makes sense.
the goal is to continue the lifestyle,sharing our talents,common land and maybe business ventures.
there are a few equestrian communities around,a really nice one in tennessee especially. but those are a little too seperate for me. i think i want to work somehow on the farm as part of the farm's staff. sort of work in an emplyee owned cooperative without leaving home.
just as important is the choice to live there without eating common meals,,pooling money,or work if i decide i'm not interested in that endeavor. it may be that i work off site because i like it better. most importantly there has to be the right mix of community and independance.

I believe this type of community also goes by the name of "co-housing." Have you done internet searches?

fallingwaters, my spouse and I have talked about finding a community like the type your looking for. We like horses, gardening and growing organic food, but don't want to live in a commune either.

I found this on the internet. "With nearly 2 million horse owners in the United States, branded equestrian developments are popping up across the country, including in Colorado, which ranks 10th nationally in number of horses. There are about 250 equestrian communities nationwide."

I think its good that developers are addressing the needs of horse owners in retirement, but would like to see them build houses on 3-5 acre lots with a small corral/stall in the back yard for those who want to keep two or more horses on their own property.

Not much for polo (especially as we get older), but it would be nice to live with other like minded individuals and be able to ride on designated bridle trails that are off limits to hunters.

Too bad you couldn't start something like this in Vermont!

A link that might be useful:

Developers build equestrian communities
www.denverpost.com/business/ci_7971835

The community in Louisa, VA is called Twin Oaks. I've known people who lived there for a time. Your property has to be pooled with others' property (unless it has changed). You can google it and learn more.

There was an equestrian community planned for my neck of the woods in the city of Atlanta (actually, unincorporated DeKalb county, but right on the border of ATL). I think it's stalled as so much new development has stalled around here. But if you'd be interested in a move to metro ATL and want info, I could give you the email addy of my friend, a realtor, who was pretty excited about the new development when she heard of it. They were going to do a thing with horse farming and also community gardens on same land. Post your email addy to me if you want contact info for her.

I did a quick search for "Equestrian community" and got TONS of hits. Here are just a few.

Good luck!

http://www.sheelahclarkson.com/equestrian-community/
http://www.cadenceblueridge.com/
http://www.theoakslakecity.com/

Fallingwaters, My brother lives in an equestrian-oriented community in CA called Auburn Lake Trails (Cool, CA). It is in the Sierra foothills; gated community. They have a website, so you can check it out. There are lots of homes for sale in a range of prices, but not cheap. Various size lots. You could do your own organic gardening; keep horses on your lot (if suitable) or board at another's in the community. It's a nice place, my wife and I are also considering it for retirement.
Steve

Have you been to the Farm Life forum? There is a thread there called "Making a little money on the farm?" Lots of interesting feedback about what has (and has not) worked for others.

A link that might be useful:

forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/farmlife/

Another option could be to go ahead with your own place but also (now or later) build a modest home (or apt over the garage or barn) on the property that you could rent to a young family or individual for a modest amount in return for help with upkeep, gardening, etc. You retain much more control of your surroundings that way as opposed to a development with HOA and restrictive covenants.

I live in a town that was built around horse interests. The town is called Wellington, Florida. Its in Palm Beach County which is about 60 miles north of Miami. We have lots of equestrian shows and events throughout the year, along with the largest equestrian show in the world. We also have Polo. In my neighborhood there are two farms that specialize in dressage. The only downside to our city is that the horse farms are not cheap. A small 5acre farm can run from about $1.5mil to more than $6mil. There are smaller ranches (2-3acres) called 'ranchets' that are significantly less. There are also some communities that have community stables.

Don't know about organic gardening, but I suppose you could do that too. Afterall, our town was a swamp only 50 years ago. Lots of good soil.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wellington, Florida

thanks for all the links folks,,i've been reading the intentional community list and ther are so many out there,,all over the planet! tons more are forming and i'm in contact with a few that seem suitable. it's an exciting concept and it even looks like resale is very good,since there are waiting lists for many already.

fallingwaters ... loved your comment about being a "full time servant to four equine" ... I just came from the barn and am tired. It's a warm winter day so I spent some extra time cleaning and mucking for my 3 mini donks pleasure!

glad you found some possibilities ...