Metairie Bank made history recently as it opened its drawers for the first time to the pockets of Northshore residents.

The bank held a grand opening ceremony for its new location at 4500 Louisiana Highway 22 in Mandeville recently. The event began at 4 p.m. with live music and an assortment of refreshments catering to nearly 100 well-dressed individuals, including state Rep. John Schroder, Mandeville Mayor Eddie Price and Police Chief Tom Buell. A ribbon cutting ceremony took place with a VIP party following from 5-7 p.m.

The bank continued the celebration the following Saturday at noon where local residents participated in a Family Fun Festival that featured free crawfish, hot dogs, snowballs and live Cajun music by La Touche. Activities included rock climbing, face painting, caricature artists, magic shows and more. Newcomers to the bank were also privy to I-pods, digital cameras or cash cards for opening an account that day.

Metairie Bank Vice President Ferd Marsolan cuts the ribbon at the branch's grand opening ceremony last Thursday with Mandeville Mayor Eddie Price and Councilman Jerry Coogan at his side. (Staff Photo by Chad Ruiz)

Vice President Ferd Marsolan said his bank is ready to serve the people north of the lake.

"We're different because we're a community bank," he said.

The 61-year-old bank currently has six branches on the Southshore with the majority of its presence operating in Jefferson Parish.

Marsolan said for residents to be on the lookout for more branches popping up on the Northshore.

"We have another location planned for Louisiana Highway 21 in Covington," he said. "We're expanding because we have no presence here, and since the storm, a lot of our customer base has moved up here."

He added St. Tammany is a prime candidate for growth with the majority of the Interstate 12 corridor located within the parish. Marsolan expects the Covington branch to possibly open next year.

Price was pleased with the bank making an entrance into his community, boasting of the aesthetics of the structure.

"Architecturally, if you look at the area of Mandeville, this fits with the scheme of exactly what we want it to be," he said. "It's a great picture of what you might see on the wall of old New Orleans."

Price also said this is a win for the business-oriented city.

"The more banks you have, the better rates get which makes our economy thrive," he said.

For more information and operating times, call 674-2255.