Rural Route Revival starts work on first home

The TV show “Rural Route Revival” started work on its first home last week, setting forms for the foundation of a three-bedroom, two-bath house with a garage and a big front porch on West Oak Street. Developer/producer brothers Lance and Corey Groves are using Olney as the setting for a “Fixer Upper”-style show about renewing rural towns in Texas. The brothers, who grew up in Graham and work as building contractors at Possum Kingdom Lake, plan to build about 10 homes in Olney for the documentary-style series which will air on a major streaming channel later this year or in early 2024. So far, everything is on track, Lance Groves said.

“The house at 304 W. Oak St. is off to a great start,” Mr. Groves said. “[Builder] D.R. Horton and their architects are working on finalizing the next house plans for 305 W. Oak St. right across the street and another lot we have deeper in the Avenues. Once we get those back, we will start breaking ground there.” Mr. Groves said the TV show will have three homes under construction “before school lets out.”

The builders also are working with local banks to set up a process for interested buyers. “Everyone who qualifies will then be vetted by us, and we will then turn and offer these homes for sale to those people we’ve selected from the list of qualified persons,” he said. The selection process is aimed at preventing real estate speculators from snapping up the homes, which will be sold at cost, and selling them for a profit, he said, adding that current full-time residents or full-time employees of Olney companies who want to become residents will have priority. “We want the owners of these homes to feel like they’ve just gotten a real break,” he said. “In my mind I see a wife who is able to view her husband in a new light as he provides a home they couldn’t have afforded last year no matter how hard he worked. It’s also for the single mother who thought home ownership can’t be hers.”