Eden Isles

Once Upon a Time

The following articles were published in The Eden Islander, the newsletter of the E.I.H.O.A., in 1994 and 1995. The author is Kasia Kobeszko, a resident then attending junior high. Invaluable sources of information were Mrs. Nell Forstall and Mrs. June Erickson, long-time Eden Isles residents.

• Life in Early Eden Isles
• The Tangled Story of Responsibility
• What Happened to the Clubhouse...
• Eden Isles Street Names
• History in the Making: The 1995 Tornado

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A Mandeville group headed by Ernest Loeb bought a large drainage district track of land south of Slidell and announced plans for a major development.

Hurricane Betsy hit the New Orleans area.

The Eden Isles Development Begins - Leisure Inc., a Monroe-based company headed by William Boles and Jamar Adcock obtained 5,300 acres of marsh south of Slidell, bisected by Interstate 10 and began development of Eden Isles.

August 15, 1969 hurricane Camille hit Pass Christian, Mississippi.

Eden Isles Pioneers - After construction began, Eden Isles had to overcome several obstacles to convince people to buy property in Eden Isles. The land was a flat reclaimed marsh without trees and a lake breeze that constantly blew construction debris and dust across the subdivision. You could see for miles in all directions, Eden Isles looked more like a desert than Garden of Eden. It was hard to convince some people to buy in Eden Isles because with the strong breeze that constantly blew across the vast open land they were concerned about hurricanes. Others were concerned about soil subsidence, because Eden Isles was reclaimed from a marsh. The concerns about soil subsidence have since proven unfounded since our soil is hard clay on top of sand strata and we have never experienced any subsidence.

The developer showed pictures of the future golf course, marina, and clubhouse. The developer provided a security guard at the Hwy. entrance and maintained the common grounds. The sales office was located on Hwy.11, at the entrance to Eden Isles, and the salesmen took people on tour through the main canals on a large motor yacht.  A large observation tower was constructed on Windward Passage for people to see the still undeveloped areas and pick out their lots. Eden Isles was a wilderness full of ducks, snakes, nutrias and alligators and the first inhabitants were true pioneers.

The first homes build along Eden Isles Drive and the clubhouse were designed in the Polynesian style. The clubhouse was located at the end of Pebble Beach Drive and was used for many social events (when Landmark Land Co. bought out Eden Isles Inc. they burned down the clubhouse, redesigned the gulf course and turned the end of Pebble Beach into a cul-de-sac).

Save Our Wetlands files Suit to Stop Eden Isles Development - In 1974, Save Our Wetlands Inc. filed suit against Leisure Inc., St. Tammany Parish, and the Corps of Engineers to halt the Eden Isles project. Most of the residents living in Eden Isles attended the hearings in federal court, and the Homeowners' Association collected donations, hired an attorney, and intervened in the suit as a defendant.

The Eden Isles Homeowners' Association adopted their By-laws - November 17, 1974.

Eden Isles Developer Goes Bankrupt - In 1977, Leisure Inc. defaulted on its loan and was taken over by Eden Isles, Inc., a company controlled by the Security Pacific National Bank of Los Angles. As a result of the bankruptcy development of Eden Isles came to a standstill. It was later speculated that the development failed because it was too ambitious for the market with unrealistic sales projections and poor access (Hwy. 11 only).

The Eden Isles Garden Club was formed

The Krewe of the Bilge has its first boat parade consisting of about a dozen boats going through the waterways to the backs of residents' homes and throwing carnival beads and trinkets. The very first residence of Eden Isles, Harry and Natalie Pierre, were the first king and queen of the Bilge.

Save Our Wetlands Loses their law Suit - In 1979, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against Save Our Wetlands Inc. and said the Eden Isles development could continue. Times-Picayune (10/30/79)

Moonraker Homeowners Association was registered with the state of Louisiana in 1980.

The Eden Isles Security Committee Was Formed to collect contributions and hirer private security guard to man the guardhouse at Hwy. 11. The developer, at no charge to the property owners, had been providing the security guard, but when the development was taken over by Eden Isles, Inc., as a result of the bankruptcy, this free amenity ended.

Eden Isles Homeowners' Association Declares Subdivision Off Limits To Aircraft - October 22, 1981, the St. Tammany Parish Council at the request of the Eden Isles Homeowners' Association passed Ordinance 81-298. The ordinance makes it unlawful for aircraft to take off, land, or taxi in or on any road or waterway located within Eden Isles. The Eden Isles Homeowners’ Association pursued this ordinance as a direct result of seaplanes and helicopters landing in the subdivision.

Eden Isles Homeowners' Association Gets Single Family Zoning For Unit 4 - January 25, 1983, the Eden Isles Homeowners' Association petitioned the St. Tammany Parish to re-zone Unit 4, from R-Rural to single family residential, A-4 designation.

Eden Isles To Get Street Lights - In August 1983 Lighting District # 7 was created to provide street lights in Eden Isles and other areas on the Northshore.

Eden Isles Homeowners' Association Brings Charges against Pilot - April 20, 1985, a seaplane crashed while attempting to land in the waterway between Hwy. 11 and Moonraker, no one was injured. The Eden Isles Homeowners' Association was fed up with pilots landing their aircraft in our subdivision and asked the Sheriff's Office to ticket the pilot in accordance with the Parish ordinance passed in 1981. The Sheriff's Office refused to issue the ticket and the Homeowners' Association took their case directly to the District Attorney. The Pilot was later charged and fined $200 and found guilty of pilot error by the Federal Safety Board. As a result of the extensive newspaper articles written about this issue and the Eden Isles Homeowners' Association involvement with the FAA, word got out and aircraft stopped landing in Eden Isles.

Hurricane Juan Hits Eden Isles - 1985, Hurricane Juan was a very small hurricane that lingered off the coast of Louisiana for days and pushed more water into Eden Isles than any of the long time residents could ever remember. However, even with the strong tidal surge of hurricane Juan the water still did not flood any homes or cover the streets, with the exception of a few locations where clogged drainage culverts prevented the streets from draining.

Landmark Land Co. Buys Eden Isles Inc. - 1987, Landmark Land Co. acquired Eden Isles Inc. for $14 million from Security Pacific National Bank of Los Angles. The entire purchase included 171 existing home lots in Eden Isles and approximately 4,600 acres of undeveloped land straddling the interstate. As a condition of the sale Security Pacific guaranteed that the Eden Isles I-10 interchange that was begun in January of 1987, would be completed (City Business, 10/24/88).

A Community Services District Was Formed For Eden Isles - In 1988, Louisiana House Bill No. 801 was passed to create the Eden Isles Community Services District. The purpose of the district was to allow us to tax ourselves and the revenue from this tax would remain in Eden Isles and be governed by a board of five Eden Isles residents. The legislation would allow the "District" to enforce the Covenants and Restrictions, provide for cutting of vacant lots, and provide security, recreation and a host of other amenities. Under the legislation, the services district could levy a parcel fee to provide services, but only if a Majority of voters agree. The Community Services District was immediately challenged and much controversy followed which ultimately killed the district.

Eden Isles Identity Crises - June 1989, Eden Isles residents feared that they were going to lose their identity. Soon after Landmark Land Co. bought out the developers of Eden Isles they began removing the Eden Isles name and replacing it with Oak Harbor, they said they would allow Eden Isles to change its name to Oak Harbor, an offer the Eden Isles residents declined. They closed down the Eden Isles golf course and burned down the Eden Isles Club House (literally). Then they changed the marina's name from Eden Isles to Oak Harbor. The Eden Isles name and Logo was removed from the Water tower and replaced with the Oak Harbor name and Logo. But when Landmark Land asked the state Department of Transportation and Development to put "Oak Harbor," not Eden Isles," on the new I-10 road signs the Eden Isles Homeowners' Association declared war and demanded that the name Eden Isles also appear on the sign and won. (Times Picayune 6/5/89)

I-10 Over Pass is opened - April 6, 1990 The Eden Isles I-10 over pass opened at a cost of $9 million.

Eden Isles Fishing Rodeo - October 5 & 6, 1991, Eden Isles held its first Fishing Rodeo and it was a big success! Music was provided by two bands, Frankie and the Cruisers performed an outstanding Las Vegas style show, the dance floor located under the big tent was jammed. A raffle gave away a 19" TV, a microwave, a disc player, a VCR, a 10 speed bicycle, a Sony watchman TV, a cassette player, several stereo systems, cordless phone, fishing supplies, a hand painted Eden Isles buoy, hardware supplies, and much, much more. There were 101 entries in the Poker Run and the rodeo made over $9,000 for the Homeowners' Association

Eden Isles Homeowners' Association Negotiates Lower Waste Disposal Rates - January 1992, the Eden Isles Homeowners' Association approached Waste Management and negotiated a rate reduction from $18 per month to $16 per month along with a senior citizen discount for those over 63 old.

Moonraker Island Homeowners Association Tried To Reactivate Their Association - On October 3, 1994 a meeting was held at the Tammany Yacht Club to reactivate the Moonraker Island Homeowners Association (M.I.H.O.A). Some of the issues that were discussed were: The Clipper Island developer's desire to sell a strip of land that surrounds Moonraker Lake to the homeowners. The Clipper Island developer wants to secede from the Moonraker covenant and establish their own covenant.

Tornado Hits Eden Isles - May 8, 1995 a tornado hit Eden Isles and does extensive damage to several homes, fortunately no one was hurt. It was heart warming to see how the community pitched in to help those in need.

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