LETTER: A Netflix hit ... without the community that inspired it?

The New York Times bestselling novel This Summer Will Be Different has come to Prince Edward Island as a Netflix series — an extraordinary opportunity for our province. But with filming centered closer to Charlottetown, this summer is starting to feel all too familiar for those of us in Western P.E.I. The book captures the [...]

The New York Times bestselling novel This Summer Will Be Different has come to Prince Edward Island as a Netflix series — an extraordinary opportunity for our province. But with filming centered closer to Charlottetown, this summer is starting to feel all too familiar for those of us in Western P.E.I. The book captures the charm of Tyne Valley beautifully: the warmth of the village, the revelry at the raucous Canadian Oyster Shucking Championship at the Tyne Valley Oyster Festival, and the character of coastal rural P.E.I. life.

Despite this, it’s unclear whether filming will take place in Tyne Valley at all. The heart of the story is here but given that there was no incentive from the P.E.I. government to bring filming west, the economic benefits will once again flow into Central P.E.I. A Netflix production has the power to transform communities. It raises a region’s profile, draws new visitors, and showcases local culture to a potential 300 million subscribers worldwide.

It also brings immediate economic benefits to the people who support the production: carpenters, drivers, caterers, restauranteurs, and the many small business owners that keep rural communities running. For Tyne Valley, it would also be a meaningful recognition of the volunteers who have spent decades building the Tyne Valley Oyster Festival that takes place annually on the first weekend of August into a North American destination. Related At a time when the MSX and dermo diseases are devastating oyster fisheries and hitting western P.E.I. hardest, opportunities like this matter more than ever.

Rural communities are looking for ways to diversify and stabilize. A major production choosing Tyne Valley would be a step toward economic resilience. Some will argue that Charlottetown has the infrastructure to support a production of this scale, but the reality is that the assets available in western P.E.I. were not fully considered or incentivized by our provincial government.

Prince County has venues, accommodations, tradespeople, and a community that knows how to host thousands during the Tyne Valley Oyster Festival every year. It’s not capacity we lack, but consideration. On paper, the Government of P.E.I. is committed to strengthening rural economies and improving quality of life outside the Charlottetown urban core.

If that commitment is real, then this is exactly the kind of opportunity that should be championed. Especially now, when so many families connected to the oyster industry are facing uncertainty. Tyne Valley is central to the story and it deserves to be part of the production, and part of the economic future that comes with it.

The Netflix team will receive a warm Tyne Valley welcome should they make the decision to film here. Stephanie Crocker, Tyne Valley, P.E.I.