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HGTV’s “Small Town Potential” will follow along as life partners Davina Thomasula and Kristin Leitheuser help families find - and renovate - their dream homes in the Hudson Valley.
In each episode, real estate agent and designer Thomasula comes up with a “timeless design plan” complemented by the area’s natural surroundings, while contractor Leitheuser brings the vision to life with her master carpenter dad Don, according to the network.
The couple is no stranger to the region. Leitheuser grew up in Pleasant Valley in Dutchess County, and Thomasula was born in Buffalo. They now live together in Kingston in Ulster County.
“The Hudson Valley is filled with fabulous old homes, farm stands and mom-and-pop businesses, yet it’s also an easy train ride into New York City,” Thomasula told HGTV.
“Even if you’ve lived here your whole life, you continue to discover new things you didn’t realize existed. Anyone with an imagination can restore some pretty amazing properties here.”
But don’t expect to see any “open concept” floor plans on this show, which features older homes where there’s “no reason to knock down walls everywhere,” Thomasula told the network.
The couple prefers to restore things to their original form, and that “often means appreciating the past and keeping rooms separate,” Leitheuser added.
In the show’s first episode, the couple makes over an 1800s-era farmhouse in the hamlet of Marlboro in Ulster County. Later in the episode, they transform a “drab” attic into a “serene” artist studio.
On what it’s been like making the jump into the world of TV, Thomasula likened the experience to an adult summer camp.
"It can be stressful because you’re not just battling your typical construction issues — there’s an elephant in the room and that’s the camera waiting to film,” she said.
“Getting there was at times a grind, but in the end, we always delivered a great product to our clients."
“Small Town Potential” premieres Wednesday, June 14, on HGTV.
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