"Home Town" on HGTV - Laurel MS

[2goldens]

I enjoy Home Town TV show. Ben and Erin are so extremely talented. Each show that I've watched, I was in awe - very impressed.

Take away greed; I'm amazed at how much they can accomplish with less funds.

Great show!

[gentlearts]

Originally Posted by 2goldens

I enjoy Home Town TV show. Ben and Erin are so extremely talented. Each show that I've watched, I was in awe - very impressed.

Take away greed; I'm amazed at how much they can accomplish with less funds.

Great show!

Have you noticed that even their price tags have gone up? It used to be they could do a remodel for $30k or so, but now it’s creeping closer to $100k

[Lee W.]

I'm going to miss getting new episodes. Unless Ben and Erin change their mind, of course! To quit or not to quit. I can't really blame them if they do.

[Suesbal]

There is a paywalled article in the Wall Street Journal about how “Home Town” has transformed downtown Laurel and raised real estate values. But Laurel’s problems can’t be solved by just those changes. The town has lost about 4,000 people since its peak. And when the series ends, people’s interest in Laurel likely ends, too.

[Suesbal]

Originally Posted by Johnathon Hills

Railfan? You may want to consider Hattiesburg, just down the road. CSX & NS lines cross there.

Actually, the Canadian National, Norfolk Southern, and Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern serve Hattiesburg.

[Lee W.]

I'm glad they are coming back for another season. Doing those shows has to be hard work after a while..Ben's Holiday Workshop was on.this morning. I'd rather see a house getting renovated however.

[badger74]

I made the trip from Virginia to Laurel just to see it for myself. The good--downtown was nearly 100% occupied with mostly newer stores and a nice uniformity of style. They do a lot with paint and signage. LOTS of tourists. The fringes of downtown are more vacant and rundown. The bad--most of the businesses are for tourists. I saw very few blacks downtown except some guys working. When the show goes away tourism will decline. Locals cant afford or dont need what they sell now. Expensive clothes. Fancy restaurants and gift stores. Enjoy it while you can. The area where 90% of what you see consists of two streets about 10 blocks long. Another two streets are hit or miss. The nice homes are really nice. Little tour vehicles were busy giving tours of the TV show houses. But it goes downhill FAST. The bad area is about 20 times the size and many houses are abandoned or very rundown. Basically shacks. This starts about 4 blocks from the prime area. The far north side of the good streets contains some of the newer ranch style houses on larger lots. They are a mixed bag. There is a main highway commercial area that runs west of the CBD. A lot of new stuff along there including a new Starbucks and lots of name brand fast food etc. Typical anywhere USA but in good shape. Hispanics must be moving in because there are quite a few ma and pa style Mexican restaurants. Probably escapees from the chicken plant in town.
If you enjoy the show it might be a fun day or two. Several decent hotels are close to downtown. It's very easy to get around by car. You can drive most of the town in a couple hours. Cant really get lost.

[stephenMM]

It's difficult for me to imagine that they ever made a show about Laurel, Ms. Granted, it's been over half a century since I lived there as a young boy at my aunt's house. Her husband Luke worked at the Masonite plant. I do remember the town though. Small, sorta redneck w/o being overly redneck, just a plain old, poor town in Mississippi. My aunt grew stuff in her back yard. Glad to hear there's some Mexican food, there was none back in the day. There was not much of anything back in the day. Hopefully it's a nicer town than Hattiesburg. I thought about moving to Hattiesburg once and wow, that was not for me. It felt more like lower Alabama in the George Wallace days, which was strange, what w/ Southern University being there.

Of course, a TV show has nothing to do w/ reality. It's entirely made up stuff that is edited to show what they want to show. I ended up on the Ms Gulf Coast, which was like a different planet compared to the rest of the state. One thing about Mississippi though. The people. You will not find people like them anywhere else. Like the old story goes, you will meet some of the best people on earth there and some of the worst. But the best far out number the bad ones. I guess we just had nothing else, and even on the Coast everyone knew everyone else, and had relatives all over the place. We took care of our own and its still like that. We had people from all over the world living on the Gulf Coast due to the war in Vietnam, the huge Air Force base, neighbors commuting over to Pascagoula to work at the shipyards. Mississippi isn't a place, its a particular state of mind w/ strong Southern values.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by badger74

I made the trip from Virginia to Laurel just to see it for myself. The good--downtown was nearly 100% occupied with mostly newer stores and a nice uniformity of style. They do a lot with paint and signage. LOTS of tourists. The fringes of downtown are more vacant and rundown. The bad--most of the businesses are for tourists. I saw very few blacks downtown except some guys working. When the show goes away tourism will decline. Locals cant afford or dont need what they sell now. Expensive clothes. Fancy restaurants and gift stores. Enjoy it while you can. The area where 90% of what you see consists of two streets about 10 blocks long. Another two streets are hit or miss. The nice homes are really nice. Little tour vehicles were busy giving tours of the TV show houses. But it goes downhill FAST. The bad area is about 20 times the size and many houses are abandoned or very rundown. Basically shacks. This starts about 4 blocks from the prime area. The far north side of the good streets contains some of the newer ranch style houses on larger lots. They are a mixed bag. There is a main highway commercial area that runs west of the CBD. A lot of new stuff along there including a new Starbucks and lots of name brand fast food etc. Typical anywhere USA but in good shape. Hispanics must be moving in because there are quite a few ma and pa style Mexican restaurants. Probably escapees from the chicken plant in town.
If you enjoy the show it might be a fun day or two. Several decent hotels are close to downtown. It's very easy to get around by car. You can drive most of the town in a couple hours. Cant really get lost.

Despite your undertone of disapproval the fact of the matter remains Laurel is much better for the Napiers efforts and the tv show. Also your descriptive of nicer parts bordering bad/poor parts is reflective of gentrification and urban renewal. The transition period can last a while and in some instances never completely take hold. The takeaway in my opinion is that it happened at all and is a benefit versus a process to mock or belittle as "not enough".

[badger74]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

Despite your undertone of disapproval the fact of the matter remains Laurel is much better for the Napiers efforts and the tv show. Also your descriptive of nicer parts bordering bad/poor parts is reflective of gentrification and urban renewal. The transition period can last a while and in some instances never completely take hold. The takeaway in my opinion is that it happened at all and is a benefit versus a process to mock or belittle as "not enough".

There have to be good long-term conditions for gentrification to take hold. I dont think Laurel has enough of those. Growing job sector. Retirement magnet. After the show ends Laurel gradually returns to its condition ex ante. Waco--the other comparable has a major growth anchor in Baylor University. It's somewhat attractive for retirees. https://texashillcountry.com/gaines-...my-waco-texas/