DAPHNE, Ala.—Lake Forest residents will cast their vote Monday for Lake Forest Property Owners Association board of directors members, and two groups of candidates are trying to sway votes in their favor in the final stretch.

Reb Bailey, Joeseph Jablecki, Steve Scarcliff, Richard Kersey, Ed Kirby, Gene Ponder and Michael Schultz are the seven candidates vying for three open spots on the board.

Bailey, Jablecki and Scarcliff are campaigning as the “A Team”, while Kersey, Kirby and Ponder are campaigning as the “Reform Team.”

Bailey has lived in the subdivision since 1984, the earliest of any candidate, and is a part-owner of a manufacturer’s representative business.

Jablecki worked for Disease Control and Prevention with the Alabama Department of Public Health.

Scarcliff spent 34 years in the Mobile Police Department and is a board of directors member for a non-profit organization.

Kersey served as Lake Forest Improvement Committee president and is on the subdivision’s Covenant Compliance Committee.

Kirby is a member of the Daphne Planning Commission and was a member of the Lake Forest board of directors for six years.

Ponder is a teacher at Spanish Fort High School and ran for Alabama lieutenant governor.

Schultz has lived in the subdivision for more than 20 years, he said, and he has engineering experience.

One of the major issues is the hiring of Vision Golf and Association as a managing company for the sub-division, which always was self-managed.

The A Team opposed process behind the decision to bring in the company.

“Our views are (more) similar than one might think,” Jablecki said about the A Team contrasted with the Reform Team. “We’re more in favor for an open, competitive bidding on some issues. The management company was brought to the board handpicked, and they voted them in.

“We’re not against Vision at all. We’re just against the process. All three of us believe professional management is a better option for managing our subdivision. The way it happened was just wrong. Vision may be the best, but who knows?”

The Reform Team favored Vision, specifically, for managing the subdivision.

“We have worked for over a year to get a professional management company in here,” Kersey said. “I believe (Vision) is the best chance for Lake Forest to get out of the rut it’s in. We want finance reform, and Vision Golf is going to do the financial work of Lake Forest. We will be getting reports back here so we can let the residents know what the money is being spent on.”

Vision plans to take the accounting and financial management aspect of Lake Forest in-house in Florida.

Kersey said he wants stricter covenants enforcement in the subdivision and better communication between the residents and the board members.

“When people go to the board meetings at a present time, they speak but they don’t get an answer,’ Kersey said. “We want to change that and communicate with the people out here.”

Jablecki said the A Team emerged because an unnamed Lake Forest resident would hand-pick and campaign for three specific candidates every year, and he, Bailey and Scarcliff wanted to combat the tactic.

Kersey said the Reform Team came because all three members were in favor of financial reform.

Schultz — not a part of either team — contended every decision should improve property values.

“I am of a conservative bent and believe that whatever is proposed to improve Lake Forest must consider the life of those living in or considering living in Lake Forest,” he stated.

Fred Hill and Dean Watson were registered candidates but dropped out of the race.

Board terms last three years. Clint Martin, Jim Moss and Bryan Frater reached the end of their terms. MaryAnn Hampton, Bill Menefee, Tony Dees, Travis Stone, Marie Bidney and Ray Sturch are remaining board members heading into the next year.