After failing Wednesday to pass a resolution supporting East Baton Rouge Parish’s reopening of bars, several Metro Council members have formally called for another special meeting Friday in hopes of a different outcome. However, that doesn’t seem likely, with the issue having become a sort of political football.
For one, at least two of the five council members who didn’t attend Wednesday’s meeting—Chandler Loupe and Chauna Banks—have confirmed they will also miss Friday’s, while two of the others—Tara Wicker and Lamont Cole—tentatively plan to attend, though neither has decided how they will vote. Council member Donna Collins-Lewis, who was also absent Wednesday, did not respond to requests for comment before this afternoon’s deadline.
What’s more, some of those members argue that the resolution doesn’t carry the force of law anyway—a position that’s seemingly been corroborated by the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, which assured yesterday that it would not rescind its approval of Mayor Sharon Weston Broome’s request for the parish to “opt-in.” This effectively allows bars throughout the parish to operate regardless of the council’s action.
“Our governor and mayor have been our respective authorities on that issue with access to experts, doctors and data I do not possess,” Loupe says in a text message. “Both have done a terrific job thus far and do not need my input, and I personally do not have any free time to play games with anyone.”
On the other hand, council members Scott Wilson, Dwight Hudson, Jen Racca, Trae Welch, Denise Amoroso and Matt Watson argue that, based on the governor’s executive order, the Metro Council is the “governing body” of the parish and has the ultimate authority on whether to reopen bars, not the mayor. It’s a sentiment shared by Parish Attorney Andy Dotson, who recommended the council push for a vote on the resolution and schedule another meeting as an added layer of caution.
“We all want the same thing, we’re just trying to find the right way to get it done,” Racca says.
While he’s happy the ATC is letting bars operate, Hudson says the entire issue “gives credence to the notion that there should be checks on executive orders.” The parish attorney’s office has reached out to the ATC asking for clarification on its decision.
They also expressed disappointment that the resolution didn’t muster the seven votes needed to pass, largely due to the absence of Loupe, their Republican colleague who co-authored the resolution. It fell one affirmative vote short, with council member Erika Green, the lone Democrat in attendance, abstaining.
Loupe says he does not “intend to interject [himself] into the COVID opening or closing guidelines,” but he did not respond to a follow-up question asking why he co-authored the resolution in the first place.
Watson, who is running for mayor against Broome and a crowded field of candidates next month, chalks up his colleagues’ absences to a “political game,” alleging that they want to paint Broome in a positive light ahead of the election rather than ensure everything is being implemented correctly.
Banks, Cole and Wicker vehemently deny that allegation. Banks says she had a meeting with BREC, while Cole had just discovered that one of his best friends had died and is currently planning the funeral. Wicker is taking care of her mother, who had a series of mini-seizures yesterday.
Green says she did not collaborate with any of the other council members about how they would address the matter. She isn’t sure whether she’ll attend tomorrow’s meeting.
The rescheduled special meeting will take place Friday at 4:30 p.m.
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