The president/CEO of Louisiana's Jefferson Financial Credit Union, a suitor in a failed merger bid this week, said “themessaging could have been better” in trying to sway membersof the targeted Main Street Financial FCU of Baton Rouge.

Still, despite “the disappointment and the hard work we've putin,” the $260 million Metairie CU will explore another merger tryafter consulting with regulators, said Mark Rosa, the Jeffersonhead.

“We'd like to get another shot,” Rosa said after Wednesday's1,000-vote member rejection of Jefferson's offer to consolidate the $96 millionBaton Rouge CU and form the state's fifth-largestCU.

The Jefferson/Main Street combination “was really a great fitand would have vastly improved” online services to the Baton Rougemarket, Rosa said, adding that it comes at a time when Main StreetFinancial like many other financial institutions has undergone “acredit crisis” resulting from the recession.

The messaging about the merger “became confused,” Rosaacknowledged. He said Jefferson Financial might have explained tomembers more clearly “how this kind of credit crisis had weakened”Main Street over the past three years and that a merger would workout well.

The Baton Rouge CU had lost $2 million in 2010 after absorbinglarge hits on corporate investments but had shown a small profitthrough the first three quarters of 2011.

Main Street Financial has 5,300 members and in December saw itspresident, Cary Anderson, step down.

“We are a healthy, well-capitalized credit union, knock on wood,but a partnership with Main Street would have created an importantstatewide credit union,” said Rosa, whose CU serves a suburban NewOrleans market.

Somehow, there was a breakdown in communication as the twoboards tried to put forward the merger, Rosa said, defending a moveby Main Street Financial, criticized by some members, to close aLake Charles branch.

That decision, said Rosa, was made to cut costs and Main Streetretains nearby facilities to serve that market.

Officials close to the negotiations said the vote also may havebeen affected by what Rosa said were rumors that many Main StreetFinancial employees would lose their jobs in a merger.