Eight years after Tumbler Ridge was featured on CBC’s Still Standing, the town may be heading towards being featured on another TV show.
This time, it’s the HGTV show Home Town Takeover Canada, which is scheduled to start production on its first season next year.
Home Town Takeover will be a nationally broadcast makeover series hosted by Ben and Erin Napier, along with Canadian designers and builders, based on a show of the same name from the US, now in its third season.
As the Canadian show is moving into its first season, it has put out a call to people interested in having their home town celebrated.
Towns featured on the show will have populations of less than 20,000 people and have “compelling stories, strong community spirit, and a need for renewal.”
When Still Standing came to town, it was spearheaded by the local Chamber of Commerce, but this proposal is being put together by the District.
According to Jesse Olsen, Director of Economic and Community Development, the key points that will be highlighted in the application include the fact that Tumbler Ridge is not a through-town, but a destination; “a vibrant and inviting downtown is critical to drawing visitors off the highway and encouraging longer stays,” writes Olsen in a report to council.
Additionally, she says, Tumbler Ridge has an aging infrastructure. “Much of the community’s core infrastructure and building stock was built in the early 1980s and is aging out at the same time, creating challenges for reinvestment and modernization.”
The town has gone through a number of boom-and-bust cycles, and is working “to diversify its economy and improve quality of life for both residents and visitors to create long-term stability,” she says. However, the town still has “vacant storefronts, aging façades, limited pedestrian activity, and harsh winter conditions that affect downtown vitality.”
Despite that, says Olsen, the town has “a strong community pride and volunteerism, a growing outdoor recreation and tourism identity, and a clear vision for a more vibrant, attractive downtown core.”
If the town is selected for the show, there is the potential for national exposure, expert-led design and construction support, and momentum for small business attraction and private investment.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
