Former Gov. Edwin Edwards visits New Iberia with wife Trina and new born son Eli.

Former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards is being remembered this week as a raconteur, a scoundrel, a dealmaker and, above all, a consummate politician. But he was also a visionary, at least according to two former Iberia Parish legislators who worked with him while in office.

Edwards died at his home in Gonzales early Monday morning, a month shy of his 94th birthday. Statements of condolence and remembrance have poured in from current and past leaders from within and outside of Louisiana. Although Edwards hailed from rice-rich Crowley, on the other side of the Acadiana prairie, he had an affinity for the Teche Area as well. In fact, his legislative floor leader through three of his terms in the Governor’s Mansion, Elias “Bo” Ackal, hailed from New Iberia, ensuring that the region received its fair share of attention during Edwards’ tenure.

Former state Sen. Craig Romero took office in 1994, during the last two years of Edwards’ last term in office. But he still had a chance to see what the tie between Ackal and Edwards meant for his district.

“He helped us build the two big hangars at the (Acadiana Regional) Airport,” Romero remembered. “I was serving my first term and Bo pulled me into the room. It was just Edwin Edwards, Bo Ackal and me. He asked, ‘So what do you need?’ Bo told him we needed a hangar, and we got $4 million to build that first hangar for Avex (Aviation Exteriors, a firm which specializes in painting aircraft).”

That was not the end of it, though. Soon afterward, the management from Avex approached Romero and said they needed a larger hangar, one capable of servicing larger passenger aircraft.

“It was three months later they said they needed a hangar for 747s,” Romero said. “So we went back to Edwin and got $6 million.”

Although it reeks of old-boy backroom dealing, the investment in those two facilities then have continued to pay dividends to Iberia Parish for almost three decades.

“A full 80 percent of the revenue for the Acadiana Regional Airport comes from Avex,” Romero said. “Hats off to Edwards and to Bo. He was able to work within the system and get what his constituents back home needed. It’s 30 years later, and we are still reaping the benefits of those two buildings.”

Former New Iberia Rep. Ted Haik served in the state house during three of Edwards’ four terms, taking office as Edwards started his second term in 1976. During that time, he saw several instances of Edwards’ foresight enriching the Teche Area for decades to come.

“The Port of Iberia was a big one,” Haik said. “He actually helped us to take the Commercial Canal from, well, a commercial canal to a waterway connecting the port with the Gulf of Mexico.”

The investment to make that happen was not insignificant. It’s also relevant as the Port of Iberia embarks on the Acadiana Gulf of Mexico Access Channel (AGMAC) project.

“That project, he gave us $10 million over the years,” Haik said. “Without that, there wouldn’t have been a port.”

The AGMAC project will build on that legacy. The latest enhancement to the Port of Iberia will cost about $35 million, deepening the existing channel to the Intracoastal Waterway and, eventually, the Gulf of Mexico, allowing for larger ships to access — and bigger projects to be built in — Iberia Parish.

There were also other pieces of infrastructure Edwards supported that were essential to helping the Teche Area grow, especially bridges to help farmers get their sugar cane crops to mills and, eventually, to market.

“From the standpoint of helping the area grow, he funded the Nelson Canal Bridge and the Bayside Bridge in Jeanerette,” Haik said. “The Bayside Bridge, that was a big one.”

Haik also listed a slew of other projects, like improvements to Burleigh Park, $1.5 million for the widening of Main Street and $200,000 for improvements to the water system in Jeanerette, $300,000 for a water plant in West St. Mary’s 7th Ward, and funding for the Chitimacha Indian Reservation ballpark (long before there was a casino there), plus funding for the overlay and widening of Avery Island Road.

“(He provided) start-up funds for the Jeanerette Museum, and other projects I don’t recall,” Haik said. “But the two bridges (Bayside and Nelson Canal) were big deals.”

Another bridge project, the Louisa Road Bridge at Cypremort Point, was one of the last projects to be contracted under Edwards in the region. At the announcement of the $20 million contract, he had a chance to show off his knowledge of the local players as well.

“This must be a good project because Dailey Berard hasn’t come out against it yet,” Edwards quipped, naming the local businessman known in newspaper circles as “Daily” Dailey Berard for his constant torrent of letters to the editor.

Haik called Edwards “a true political friend” and cited the former governor’s one vice — women.

“It is true he never drank or smoked,” Haik said. “He always ate very healthy. Very disciplined. But he really liked his women.”

Romero said that Edwards remained active in the Teche Area even after leaving office, attending events at the port — where Edwards would, as he did in every room he entered, hold the center stage.

“He had a strut when he walked in,” Romero said. “I remember one time, I think it was for a GSX project, and they had a reception on the back deck of one of the crew boats. There were a couple of hundred people on that boat, but you couldn’t miss Edwin. He was dressed, fit to kill.”

Edwards will lie in honor in Memorial Hall at the State Capitol Saturday for public viewing. The capitol will be open from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. for those wishing to pay their respects.

According to state Speaker of the House Clay Schexnayder’s office, family members and close friends will pay their respects on Sunday, when Edwards will lie in repose at the Old State Capitol.

Funeral arrangements for Edwards have not yet been set.