Could Placer County tourist attractions fill a half-hour television series?

El Dorado County is spending big bucks to promote itself through “Experience El Dorado,” a glossy TV magazine airing monthly on KXTV a la PBS’s long-running “California’s Gold.”

That has some locals thinking about the possibilities.

“I think it’s an outstanding idea,” said Greg Van Dusen, chief executive of Placer Valley Tourism, one of the county’s three tourism bureaus. “I’m really happy for El Dorado they’re getting the attention. We’d love to have similar attention.”

Maybe it’s not such a wacky notion. The two brains behind the El Dorado production – Todd Stanley, an Emmy award-winning cinematographer and producer of “Deadliest Catch,” and Cory Tapia, the show’s host – have Placer connections. Stanley grew up in Rocklin and graduated from Roseville High School. Tapia is a third generation Roseville resident, class of 1987 Roseville High School graduate.

“Todd and I went to high school together,” Tapia said. “I kind-of fell into the job as co-host of the show when Todd asked me to do the pilot. We’re now working on the fifth episode and the response to the first show (which aired July 5) has been phenomenal.”

Tapia said he’s done a bit of announcing for various events throughout the years, but this show is his first attempt at being in front of the camera.

“I grew up with a lifestyle of entertaining,” he said. “Being on TV was not nerve-wracking at all.”

Tapia said what makes the “Experience El Dorado” show even more rewarding is not only working with Stanley, but also with Melissa Wilkins, an Oakmont graduate who is working on the sales team.

A MAJOR ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTOR

It’s not hard to understand why El Dorado put up $50,000 for production, with the El Dorado Visitors Authority another $20,000, according to reports. Tourism brings in millions for local economies.

A Placer County study released in April claims 9,460 county jobs are related to the industry, and that tourist spending totals $787 million.

But the economy is biting into that, at least where hotel receipts are concerned.

“The overall business in our market is down 9 or 10 percent,” said Van Dusen. But he added, “In comparison to other markets that’s outstanding; they’re down 20 to 30 percent.”

Still, he adds that a hotel building-boom here has increased supply by about 20 percent in the last year.

“That poses the question, with increased supply, what are we going to do to increase demand?” he said.

WHAT DRAWS THEM HERE

South Placer’s No. 1 hotel-room draw probably wouldn’t make for good TV: business travel. But there’s no lack of more telegenic possibilities throughout the county. Here’s a look at some possibilities:

* NATURE – When it comes to Placer tourism, “I don’t know what more you have to know than the words Lake Tahoe,” Van Dusen said.

* SPORTS – Sports are a huge part of the tourism mix, especially in south Placer where facilities include the Hardwood Palace basketball arena and Roseville Aquatics Center, Van Dusen said. And team-sport competitions like BMX racing, soccer tournaments and swim meets are up.

* SHOPPING – Stand at the corner of Galleria Boulevard and Roseville Parkway, and it’s easy to see why Roseville had the 11th-highest retail sales of all of 2008. The mega-accumulation of shops at the expanded Galleria mall and Fountains center draws people from throughout the region, according to Placer Valley Tourism surveys.

DOWN THE PIKE

Officials are keen on luring more travelers with a convention center and major sports facility. Both plans, long discussed, are on hold thanks to a shaky economy that’s made big building projects hard to pull off.

What tourism officials are trying to do now is extend Placer’s brand further. Next stop: wine.

“We’re positioning ourselves to be the gateway to the Placer County wine country,” Van Dusen said.

As for upcoming topics for the show, Tapia said he’s got it wired.

“I already have 125 ideas listed on post-its,” he said.

The next “Experience El Dorado” will air at 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2 on KXTV-10.

Susan Belknap contributed to this report.