Ep. 8: Andre Boudreau (Part 2)- Seriously...Let's Get Serious.

Andre Boudreau returns for part two of our in depth conversation with the town councilor currently running for First Warden. While part one was a hilarious stroll down memory lane, in part two Rich and Marc ask some tough questions.Andre explains his reasons for running for town council and underscores the difficulties the council has encountered in trying to make progress happen amidst a revolving door of town managers over the last few years. We learn how the problem with retaining a town manager directly impacts the council's ability to see projects through when the guard is constantly changing.What comes next is a detailed account of Andre's role in reacting to the ever-changing protocols and problems associated with preparing Block Island to weather one of its most challenging summers on record. In the face of a global pandemic Andre and his fellow councilors were responsible for making decisions that would drastically impact Block Island's inhabitants. Oftentimes, those decisions were made with little time to adequately analyze the issue at hand. Andre recalls the day a state official called asking whether or not Block Island's harbor should be closed. Andre found himself pondering this question in the parking lot of a mainland Target.Some of the decisions the council faced were gut-wrenching. One such was a stop work order (ultimately passed) that threatened to put the island's work force on the bread lines. Other decisions were not as difficult to make. A sizable group of islanders urged the council to entertain the concept of a "herd immunity" solution to the Covid problem wherein the island would allow the virus to have its way with the island's residents. Considering the toll this would have taken on the island's elder citizens, Andre's response was an immediate and emphatic, "No".But the pre-season problems proved to be only the tip of the iceberg. Expecting the summer tourist season crowds to be a fraction of what the norm, Block Island instead experienced numbers on par with what would be considered a "normal" influx of visitors. To complicate things, this past summer's visitors proved noticeably rowdier then usual. With the island's Police force and Volunteer Rescue Squad both overwhelmed, Andre admits to reluctantly voting for a motion that would invoke immediate backlash.In mid-August the town council voted to suspend outdoor entertainment licenses. Most of the island establishments were indeed doing their best to ensure the safety of their staffs and patrons. Still the council made an across the board decision to suspend all outdoor entertainment licenses instead of focusing on the couple of establishments that were allegedly not taking their Covid prep seriously enough. What resulted was a teachable moment of sorts where a number of island businesses banded together to express their objection to the council's decision. One week later, the council reversed their decision and reinstated the licenses. Rich and Marc grill Andre as to why the council decided to make a blanket decision instead of sanctioning only the problematic establishments. The answer is more complicated than one would think.Andre Boudreau took up a good bit of our time. And we're glad he did. Our conversation yielded the sort of discourse one would hope from a person seeking public office. Thoughtful, intelligent, informative, honest and most of all- sincere. Until November 4th, 2020 the future of Block Island awaits the results. In the meantime, we hope this episode sheds some light on just how complicated things can get out here. And that fortunately, there's someone spending a good deal of his time working through those complications.Now quit yer' fillibusterin' and hit "PLAY", Cap'!