Gay retirement communities are gaining popularity. As one potential buyer, quoted in this article, stated, being part of the majority is something queers don’t get to do very often.

ZIONVILLE, N.C. — Tucked into the forests of the North Carolina mountains is a gated community designed by developers for people like them.

Lesbians and gay men.

At Carefree Cove near Boone, Cathy Groene and Gina Razete are selling more than wooded lots with views of Snake Mountain. They’re marketing the freedom to walk down the road hand-in-hand, dance together at community socials, and talk unself-consciously about a same-sex partner.

Atlantan Jeanne Dolan, 53, an online college instructor, bought the concept.

“I liked the idea of living in a community where I could be open and accepted, even embraced for who I am,” she says.

Razete, 50, and Groene, 57, are pioneers in the growing business of second-home and retirement developments for lesbians and gays. Others are going up in California, New Mexico and downtown Boston.