Public to get road access to Elmer’s Island

• By JOE MACALUSO
• Advocate Outdoors writer
• Published: Jul 1, 2009 - Page: 1C

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GRAND ISLE — Sport fishermen ruled the day Tuesday when Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries secretary Robert Barham announced the public would have road access to Elmer’s Island for the first time in nearly eight years.

“We are going to open the gates (off La. 1) one-half hour before sunrise Friday for the sportsmen of our state and their families to be able to enjoy this wonderful place,” Barham said.

Barham’s announcement came during ribbon-cutting ceremonies for the LDWF’s $23 million Fisheries Research Lab on Grand Isle.

Barham led a tour of Elmer’s Island shortly after noon Tuesday.

The island was closed shortly after the peak of the fishing season in 2001 and the entrance gate to the island, and sportsmen, beachcombers and bird watchers have found a locked gate blocking road access to the island since early 2002.

Like all LDWF-managed holdings, anyone 16 and older entering Elmer’s Island this weekend must have a valid Louisiana fishing or hunting license or a valid Wild Louisiana Stamp.

All 2008-09 licenses expired Tuesday, which means anyone 16 and older entering Elmer’s Island must have a 2009-10 license. An exemption is made for residents 69 or older.

Barham said limited facilities have forced state officials to limit road access to Elmer’s Island to day-use only.

Fishermen and other users will be limited to the island from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset Friday through Sunday.

“We wanted the citizens of the state to use this area for the Fourth of July weekend. They will be able to drive to the beach and down the beach for the holiday,” Barham said. “Sunday night we will lock the gates again and will not reopen it until we can develop a long-term plan for its use.”

Barham said Elmer’s Island is unique among LDWF holdings and said the state agency is looking into facilities like restrooms, picnic areas and trash collection sites.

The state has been negotiating with the Elmer family since 2002 for the purchase of the property located west of Grand Isle, the state’s only inhabited barrier island. For decades, the Elmer’s family charged a fee for access to the beach and other waterways on the 1,400 acres the family claims to own in southern Jefferson Parish.

Barham said access was made possible when the state used the “quick take” law to gain access to the roadway that leads from La. 1 to the Elmer’s beach.