HGTV's Alison Victoria Is Back With Windy City Rehab After Nearly Quitting The Business
Season 4 of the HGTV show "Windy City Rehab" premieres Tuesday, May 23, at 9 p.m. EST. However, choosing to continue with another season was not an easy decision for host Alison Victoria, who's been through so much during the past few years. She's faced legal issues and a split from her contractor Donovan Eckhardt (whom she no longer has contact with after allegations of mishandled company money), and these situations had her questioning her future in the real estate business. She told People in an exclusive interview, "I was at a place where I didn't know if I even wanted to do this anymore. I felt myself flipping and reevaluating things to say like, 'Do I really even want to be in this business anymore?'"
What she desperately needed was to get her passion back, and that's precisely what she found during a trip to Paris, France. "I am in my favorite place on earth, I'm in Paris ... I'm here to unwind and relax and find my inspiration again," Victoria explained in a teaser for the new season (via HGTV). "I was losing steam back home, I felt myself getting very angry and upset, and I wasn't truly loving what I was doing anymore." After relaxing with friends, shopping at the Paris Flea Market, and disconnecting from her regular life, she was able to rekindle her love for renovating houses.
What to expect in Season 4 of Windy City Rehab
While "Windy City Rehab" used to focus solely on Victoria's home city of Chicago, this season is also filming in Paris, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. Victoria told the Chicago Sun-Times that Season 4 is a fresh start for her, and she's eager for people to see who she really is. "I'm again the person I've always been — happy, passionate, with a living-life-to-the-fullest approach. It was gone for a few years. But it's all back ... And it feels really good."
Like in previous seasons, Victoria aims to restore historic homes to their former glory for her clients. "When I walk in the homes, most of the history has been stripped out. For me, it feels like it's my job to put it back in," she told People. "And so it's like taking these really historic pieces from wherever I find them, breathing new life into them and then, in turn, breathing new life into the spaces and creating a new history for the pieces."
While this can be difficult work, Victoria says it's always worth it for the result. "It's so emotional. And it's so beautiful at the end of some of these when you're letting them back into their homes and you're just being flooded with love and emotion," Victoria explained to People. "I love that part of my job."