The National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg, TN, is a wonderful example of people taking action to improve their situation instead of sitting around and waiting for someone to fix it for them!  Perhaps it is fitting that South P is known as a small town with a big heart and proud of its roots!

When big shopping centers and a bypass threatened the livelihood of the small town of South Pittsburg, local leaders and citizens came together to secure the long term future of their city. They came up with the idea of a festival in which citizens, organizations and churches could all participate and all share in the rewards. As a result, the city has improved itself immensely through landscaped streets, building ball fields, supporting churches, scouts, libraries, and schools. More importantly, the citizens of South P have a great sense of pride in their small town.

On the last full weekend in April, this small, close-knit community of about 3,500 people draws crowds of over 40,000!  The National Cornbread Festival is a week-end long celebration with live music, farm animals, a 5K race, children's corner, exhibits, a classic car show and of course, the National Cornbread Cook-off.  If making it is not your thing, then take a stroll down Cornbread Alley and taste nine different kinds of mouth watering cornbread! Let me tell you, this isn't your ordinary cornbread! This year's recipes include Pineapple Cream Cheese Cornbread, Squash Cornbread, Apple Poppers, Cheddar Cornbread, and Mandarin Orange Cornbread.

For more information, you can visit the Cornbread Festival website. The National Cornbread Festival theme song that plays on the home page will really get you in the mood to kick your heels up and head to South P, Tennessee!!

Now, I am off to pack for the Festival -- I am looking forward to eating some cornbread this weekend!

As the leaves change into exquisite hues of red and gold, this is the perfect time to visit Stoneclift and discover how close yet affordable your mountain getaway or home can be! Stoneclift offers gracious mountain living in a unique property nestled atop the Cumberland Plateau between Monteagle and Chattanooga in one of Tennessee's loveliest settings. Stoneclift is unique because it appeals to both vacation homeseekers as well as primary homebuyers. Stoneclift is a small, gated community where people can get to know their neighbors if they wish, but with large and private enough homesites that they can also keep to themselves. Stoneclift offers the amenities one would expect in a high-end community as well as in a vacation retreat, and Stoneclift's homesites feature the kind of breathtaking views you would only expect to find at a mountain resort, but can have at your primary residence.

Being within 20 minutes from Monteagle, Sewanee and University of the South, TN; 30 minutes from Chattanooga, TN; and 2 hours or less from Nashville, TN, Huntsville & Birmingham, AL; and Atlanta, GA, Stoneclift offers the ability for second homeowners to have a retreat they can actually use on a regular basis as well as a gracious setting for primary homebuyers who work close by.  Stoneclift is just four miles from local shops and restaurants.  Nickajack Lake is only twenty minutes away and the popular Tims Ford Lake is a scenic 45-minute drive through Sewanee and Cowan.

In keeping with its environmental vision, the Stoneclift developer has set aside more than 50 acres for wildlife refuge, and the National Wildlife Federation has designated the new Stoneclift mountain residential community as a Certified Wildlife Habitat. The Stoneclift habitat attracts a variety of birds, butterflies, and other wildlife which helps protect the environment. The protective covenants include 'tree save' provisions to assure a natural, leafy atmosphere throughout Stoneclift. The standing timber provides optimum privacy for each home, and the landscaping incorporates plants which have been cultivated to attract multiple species of birds and butterflies.

As Southeast Tennessee's premier gated mountain community, Stoneclift's impressive amenities package includes:

•  a hand-crafted pavilion with gas grill and wireless internet -- perfect for small get togethers
• an outdoor fireplace,
• walking trails
• a playing field
• outdoor amphitheatre with a water feature
• swimming pool
• paved roads and underground utilities
• sensible covenants to protect your investment

Homesites start at $50,000 for a wooded lot and go up to $330,000 for a six-acre executive estate lot with both mountain and valley views. There are also price-points in the $100,000 and $200,000 range with the idea that there is something for everyone. Each lot will be surveyed and perked.

Disounted homesites:

• 616 Stoneclift Drive, 2.11 acres, $55,000 (discounted $25k)
• 465 Stoneclift Drive, 2.5 acres, $130,000 (discounted $25k)
• 225 Fife Street, 5.16 acres, $200,000 (discounted $40k)
• 162 Bagpiper's Walk, 4.58 acres-estate lot, $275,000 (discounted $25k)
• 125 Scots Point, 5.58 acres, $280,000 (discounted over $30k)

For more information, visit www.stoneclift.com or call Jacquie Jenkins (real estate agent and related to developer) at 615-423-3977.