Rock Solid Builds bringing rock solid boost to Brigus summer tourism

With a successfulfirst season of Rock Solid Buildsin the books, the mayor of Brigus, N.L., says the community is seeing a boost in tourism thanks to thehome renovation show.

Rock Solid Buildspremiered on HGTV in February, and followsthird-generation homebuilder Randy Spracklinand his team at Newfound Builders in Brigus. The show centres on the team breathing new life into properties across Newfoundland's east coast, including homes in the community.

After the first episode aired, BrigusMayor Byron Rodway said, people started flocking to the area to see the team's handiwork.

"It's had a great effect, especially last year when the show first aired," Rodway told CBC Radio'sWeekend AM.

"Brigus is normally pretty laid back in March, April, May. It was noticeable after the first show appeared on TV. We were seeing a lot of traffic."

Rodway said most of the first season was shot in late 2019, before the province began dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. With the pandemic limitingtravel, he said, a lot of people visited Brigus to admire what they had seen on TV.

"As a result of the television show, therewere so many people coming to visit and looking around.People would say 'Excuse me, sir, can you tell me where the Earle house is?" he said, referring to a property worked on during one of the show's early episodes.

"They're coming to see the development, the work done by Newfound Builders. 'Let's go to Brigus and have a look and see what they're talking about.' We see quite a number of vehicles and people walking and asking questions."

LISTEN|The CBC's Heather Barrett takes a tour of Brigus and the houses featured onRock Solid Builds:

Rodway said the show's success has also translated to boosts for other businesses in the community, like restaurants, serving as another feather in the region's cap.

It's something Spracklin sayshe noticed almost instantly after the first few episodes of the show aired.

"You'd drive out to Brigus and it looked like a sunny day, you'd say it's almost [like] the Blueberry Festival with the line of traffic and people walking the roads," he said.

"Brigus was always full, but since the show came out [there's] definitely a lot more people wanting to visit and see the builds that we're doing."

When asked about how the newly renovated homescould affect the local real estate market, Rodway said the show is the latest chapter in a story of development in the community and surrounding area.

"Most of the land that was vacant when I was going to schoolup until a few years ago[has] been all bought up, and the houses, there's houses built on property now.I can go back 55 years there was nothing there," he said.

"That's a good sign for the community. The community's doing really well."

Spracklin and his teamhopeto continue the success of Season 1 with the show's second season, expected to air later this year, full of new builds and new experiences.

The experience is something Spracklin says he's still getting used to especially being noticed like a celebrity whenever he comes back to Brigus.

"People knowing who I am is still a surreal thing. I'm not used to that yet. But [there's] definitely a lot of buzz. We're working hard to try and pull off better projects."

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