Isle Madame Impacted By Pandemic and Social Distancing

ARICHAT - Members of the local business community, the tourism sector and volunteer organizations in Isle Madame have all felt the impact of the social-distancing restrictions applied to Nova Scotia as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Small business owners Lisa Boudreau and Shauna Austin, both members of the Isle Madame Tourism and Trade Association (IMTTA), joined the Commodore of the Isle Madame Boat Club, Bob Martel, for a "Life In Isle Madame" panel discussion hosted by TELILE 24/7 host Adam Cooke at the Telile Community Television studio in Arichat on July 16. 

All three panelists painted a bleak picture of the struggles they have faced with their own businesses and organizations, as well as the general outlook faced by Isle Madame tourists and residents since Nova Scotia entered into a state of emergency in mid-March. 

"There's this sense of awkwardness and cautiousness with people," said Austin, the owner-operator of The Clairestone Inn in Arichat. 

 "As Maritimers, and Nova Scotians, we are naturally very warm and welcoming, and we probably invade personal space way too often...But we've lost that warmth a little bit. Conversations with guests are now shorter because of that awkwardness."

Despite the opening of the Atlantic bubble in early July, allowing East Coast residents to travel within the four Atlantic Provinces without self-isolation, Austin noted that she has only seen "trickles" of clientele from other parts of Nova Scotia and the rest of the Maritimes.

Boudreau, the managing director of La Goelette a Pepe Cafe in Arichat, said the swiftness and extensive nature of Nova Scotia's social-distancing measures led to a 90 per cent drop in overall sales this past spring. However, she added that local residents and visitors from around the Maritimes are starting to return to the business, which has installed transparent barriers between staff and customers and recently re-opened its main seating area after a three-month shutdown. 

Martel noted that the Isle Madame Boat Club has also struggled, partly because the amount of marine traffic has declined but also because the organization has been unable to open its clubhouse. This has prevented the club from holding fundraisers such as its traditional community breakfasts, as well as rentals such as weddings and family reunions, cutting into the volunteer group's bottom line.