Business View Civil and Municipal | Volume 2, Issue 9

131 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 2, ISSUE 9 SL IDELL , LOUI S I ANA “If you look at our residents, they’re truly our biggest asset,” boasts Mayor Greg Cromer. “We’ve been living together and joining in marriage for generations. We genuinely have a warm, welcoming, and loving atmosphere within the community. Whenever one of us has a problem, whether it’s a fire, flood, or hurricane, we all pull together.” When Hurricane Katrina struck the southeastern United States in August 2005, Slidell was especially hard hit. “We started helping people pull up carpet, cut sheet rock out of their homes, and get themselves together. You’d see neighbors gathering families together to help tackle a home. At the end of a day, they had it gutted and were ready to start the rebuilding process. It was truly friends helping friends, families helping families. Neighbors showing the true spirit of our community; that’s what we’re all about here in Slidell.” Today, the community spirit remains strong, along with the housing market. Over the past nine months, homes have sold both quickly and above asking price. The average turnaround is anywhere from two weeks to a month. “We’ve got inventory that accommodates the needs of the community right now,” Mayor Cromer reports. “We do have a couple of ongoing projects, including the 2,500-home development of Lakeshore Villages by D.R. Horton on the south side just outside city limits.” There are plans for other developments, but zoning changes need to be implemented to proceed. A few months ago, Slidell City Council placed an 18-month moratorium on the construction of multifamily housing. “We truly have more apartment complexes than we need,” Mayor Cromer explains. “We consider multifamily as anything over a two-unit development; people can still put duplexes in for garden or patio style homes.” The hold is until the city completes its Slidell 2040 Comprehensive Plan, that will lead Slidell growth over the next 20 years. The Comprehensive Plan also applies to the Mayor Cromer helps cut the ribbon to officially open Lori’s Art Depot during White Linen and Lagniappe. Keep Slidell Beautiful Tree Giveaway. Pictured Left to Right - Councilwoman Leslie Denham, Councilman David Dunham, Alex Carollo, Mayor Cromer, Peggy Cromer, Tommy Reeves, Trey Brownfield