Boardman, Ohio residents make themselves at home with ABC
People are lining up to give Jeff Novak a $500,000 French-door home, a Harley-Davidson, new car, property tax pay-off, homeowners' insurance, a mortgage write-off, free haircuts for three kids for two years, a toaster -- anything -- but it may be the Youngstown area that is the real winner this week.
Ever since producers for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" picked the local middle-school teacher for a new house, Novak's neighborhood has turned into a Northeast Ohio version of Hollywood.
The new home will be unveiled today, and its episode will likely air in December on the surprisingly popular spin-off reality show (now in its third season) that drew 16.1 million viewers this week.
For the past six days on this Boardman, Ohio, neighborhood block, Ty Pennington fans have swooned from the sidelines (the show's host arrived on set riding in a motorcycle's sidecar) and local businesses have embraced the 106-hour construction-marathon shoot as a marketing opportunity equivalent to the Apollo moon landing.
"This area has such negative publicity," said Melinda Calhoun, a heart-monitor tech from Salem Community Hospital, as she lugged siding away from the construction site. Calhoun said "Extreme Makeover," which never fails to make her cry each week, countered that.
The world immediately around 80 Arlene Ave., is a population of hundreds. It supports one ABC-TV station affiliate and two local radio stations. A makeshift gated bullpen reigns in spectators who come at all hours to see the TV show shoot, with help from a 12-hour-a-day shuttle from nearby Southern Park Mall.
Others simply climb over fences to get close to the action, said neighbor Maritsa Fink.
Because "Extreme Makeover" doesn't have the budget of super-produced shows like "Desperate Housewives," ABC relies on donations for everything -- food, construction materials and manpower, said location manager Milan Vasic, of Lock and Key Productions.
"Giving is contagious," said Chris Abraham, who owns TC Quality Homes, which is building the house.
At least 30 restaurants have donated food at the site, Abraham said. A blue "Extreme Makeover" T-shirt gets you free meals for days on end. There have been at least 2,000 volunteers. So many people wanted to be a part of the Novak construction project that Abraham has been turning people away.
"Yeah, it's a bit of overkill," said Ray Bagdassarian, 38, about the big home-grown production.
Bagdassarian said he has lived next door to Novak for three years, but he'd only talked to the quiet man occasionally, whenever both were working in their separate garages.
Bagdassarian said most locals were treating the event as the greatest, most positive opportunity to hit the Youngstown area, maybe ever.
"Somebody said the other day, 'This is the most popular Youngstown has been since Joey Naples,'" he said.
Naples, now deceased, was a reputed Mafia crime boss from the area.
ABC selected Novak after receiving an application saying that he lost his wife, Jackie, on Mother's Day. Jackie died of a pulmonary embolism shortly after watching the Sunday night show (her favorite) two weeks after giving birth to the couple's third child.
When Novak returns today from a free weeklong Daytona Beach vacation to a brand-new four-bedroom blue cottage-style home. But the new house might not be the only thing he can't believe.
A Home Savings vice president has been handing out brochures to start a college fund for daughters Zoey, Harley and Presley -- at her bank, of course. There are Ohioans who want to give him free car washes.
Bagdassarian said other than a tree-torturing stump grinder that kept him awake and the fact that his landlord wanted the $500-a-day fee ABC was giving him for his inconvenience, he felt justly compensated in another way.
"There have been 100 neighbors in the history of the show," he said. "My payment is living right next door."
Road trip
Directions to 80 Arlene Ave., in Boardman, Ohio, from Pittsburgh (about 63 miles):
- Take Interstate 279 North to I-79 North
- Merge onto I-76 West via exit 77
- Merge onto I-680 North via exit 234
- Take US-224, exit 11
- Turn left on Boardman Poland Road
- Turn right on Southern Boulevard
- Turn left on Arlene Avenue
Watch the show
What: 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'
When : 8 p.m. Sundays on ABC
