On Tuesday, April 13, the Block Island Tourism Council denied a request for additional money to fund the Visitors Center for the summer of 2021. The TourismCouncil has already committed to half the funding for the “tourism ambassadors” that provide the public with information at the center in Old Harbor.Last month, Block Island Chamber of Commerce Director Lars Trodson came to the Tourism Council with a request for $25,000 to fully fund wages for the workers. The Tourism Council agreed to fund half of the amount in their fiscal year that begins July 1, 2021. They suggested that some of the money that comes from dues paid by businesses to join the Chamber be used for the purpose, and they also suggested talking to the town for funding.
The Visitors Center has become a responsibility shared between the Chamber, the Tourism Council, and the Town of New Shoreham and the conversation around funding is one that reoccurs each year at budget time.Trodson appealed to the Town for the remaining $12,500 but was denied, and First Warden Andre Boudreau suggested he go back to the Tourism Council for the rest of the money. The town does however provide $10,000
