DAPHNE — The Lake Forest Property Owners Association may be working with the city to open the marina to the public.

A McMahon Group study done within the subdivision suggests most residents favor opening the amenities to the public.

Seventy-five percent of Lake Forest members agreed with the concept of improving the marina by partnering with the city, according to LFPOA President John Peterson.

Fourteen percent of members disagreed with the idea and 11 percent remained neutral, according to the results.

Mayor Fred Small said the city could use the facilities.

“We have nothing really to offer the boating community, so to speak,” Small said.

May Day Park has the only city-owned boat ramp; other bay access points include McMillan Bluff and Bayfront Park, Small said.

The city and LFPOA have not taken official actions to open Lake Forest facilities to the public, Small and Peterson said.

Such steps, if chosen, would first require improvements to the facilities, Hal Pierce, a Lake Forest resident and marina builder, said.

The marina would need to be redesigned to hold more boats.

Currently, maximum capacity is 85, but it has the potential to hold 200, Pierce said.

Also, more space would have to be allocated for storage, Pierce said. No other boat storage exists in Daphne, he said.

The piers received repairs after Hurricane Ivan hit in 2004 but have not been repaired since Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, according to Pierce.

Because the club and marina are open only to members, they lack sufficient funds for such repairs, according to Pierce.

Survey results showed 67 percent of members do not want facilities given to Daphne to operate publicly; 22 percent approved of the notion; and 11 percent remained neutral, according to Peterson.

Members agree with giving partial public use of the facility and getting the facilities improved by means other than LFPOA , according to Peterson.

“I think our yacht club is one of our major assets,” Peterson said.

“We have a multimillion dollar property and the city wants us to give them a portion of that. My position is that they purchased Village Point (Park Preserve), the Bayfront site, and now, since they don’t have a sheltered waterway, they want that given to them,” Peterson said.

“From a business perspective that doesn’t make sense to me when they bought the others,” Peterson said.

If Lake Forest turned the property over to the city, grants could be obtained to help cover the costs, Small said.

“The reconstruction of piers is not a high expense, it’s just lumber and labor,” Pierce said, adding it would cost about $15,000 for a pier; but monthly rent could bring in more than $1,200 a month.

Pierce is working with a landscape architect on redesigning the marina. The plan will include enlarged docks, a bluff overlooking the bay and a walkway that connects from south of the Bayfront pier to north of the marina, Pierce said.

“We have to inspire City Council and the LFPOA,” Pierce said.

One big obstacle is the dredging that is needed, according to Pierce.

Pierce has a permit to dredge, he said, but the cost is holding it up.

The project could cost upwards of $200,000, he said.

Dredging would clear channels and help with drainage around Blakeley River, Pierce said.

An area of about three-quarters of a mile long and 40 feet wide would be dredged, according to Pierce.

Then a cut would be made into the marina and in front of the city’s property, Pierce said.

Some areas need to be cleaned up because areas do not allow for boats over 30 feet to get in and out, Peterson said.

Yachts would be able to access the marina as well because the water would not be as shallow, Pierce said.

Plans and talks are in the early stages, both Small and Peterson said.