| If you would like to retire in a place with a community-oriented atmosphere, with tree-lined sidewalks, hiking trails through acres of wooded wild-life preserves and almost within walking distance of one of the best trout streams to be found anywhere, you just might want to pay a visit to Norris or Oak Ridge, Tennessee, small towns resting within the shadows of the Great Smokies and Cumberland Mountains in the lake country of East Tennessee. Perhaps, most surprising, these picturesque communities are less than thirty minutes from downtown Knoxville, a booming metropolitan area with great hospitals and health-care facilities, a major university, superb restaurants and shops and a wide assortment of cultural activities ranging from an opera company and symphony orchestra to weekly free outdoor concerts featuring pop, rock and bluegrass music. Situated just two miles from I-75, access to Norris is both quick and attractive, with a four-lane approach lined with green fields and split rail fences. Built in the 1930ís to house workers for TVAís Norris Dam, Norris was designed as a true master-planned community with a network of small, bungalow-style homes connected by a network of winding streets, walking and hiking paths and sidewalks. Spacious, open green spaces were left for public commons and school sites. The majority of the original homes, while small and unassuming, have been preserved and carefully maintained or renovated. And although there have been a number of new homes built in recent years, one still finds an absence of urban sprawl and vehicular traffic.
Approximately twenty minutes west of Norris is Oak Ridge, known throughout the world as a result of its role in the development of atomic energy. Today, Oak Ridge's economy is still closely tied to the scientific community, and high tech companies retain a definite presence. Its affordable cost of living, excellent schools and quality health care facilities make it a highly desirable place to live or retire. Oak Ridge, like Norris, is readily accessible to several nearby lakes, including Norris Lake, a 34,000-acre paradise that has become a mecca for houseboaters, water skiers and fishermen. Three state parks are close by, and the Great Smoky Mountains, with the tourist towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, can be reached in an hour or less.
For those interested in pursuing educational activities, the University Of Tennessee in Knoxville, and Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge offer a wide variety of credit and non-credit courses covering a multitude of subjects.
Population: Norris (1,500) Oak Ridge (27,200)
Anderson County (71,300)
Nearby Cities: Clinton, Knoxville
Climate: January Avg Low: 27 July Avg. High: 88
Rainfall: 55" Snowfall: 9"
Median Housing Value: $117,000
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Waterfront
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Retirement