County Commissioners make decisions on annexation requests, hear concerns

PERRY —  The Houston County Board of Commissioners dealt with a few annexations from the City of Warner Robins in Tuesday’s meeting. 

These annexation requests are located on separate properties, situated on Lake Joy Road and Duskmoore Drive. 

The first request was for a property of 8.75 acres on the north side of Duskmoore Drive. 

Kris Dekker stated that he lives in the Weatherby Plantation and had some concerns about the annexation, speaking against it. He said their initial petition to stop the annexation was not to block the development on the land. 

“The original plans for Weatherby Subdivision included development of Duskmoore as Phase Two of Weatherby Plantation. The original plotting of the land and the original zoning of the land is R-1 and that has been in the public record since the beginning of the development as it was known by every entity that has required ownership of that property,” he said. “From the beginning the land was not suitable for septic and it would require city sewer services if it were to be developed due to the current zoning.” 

Dekker pointed out that residents in the area were aware that some type of R-1 development and eventual annexation by the city were likely; however, he stated that the proposed annexation also requested additional R-2 rezoning on the north side of Duskmoore. 

“[This] will increase the density, obviously, of the residential dwellings, and so it’s the rezoning request and not necessarily the annexation or development that we are petitioning,” he said. “While increasing density certainly increases opportunity for tax revenues, it is wholly inconsistent with the character of all residential neighborhoods on the whole of Lake Joy Road.” 

Dekkar claimed the increase in residential density on Duskmoore Drive will pose more dangers in traffic and pedestrian safety, especially at the intersection of Lake Joy Road. 

Brian Braun with Axis Consulting Engineers represented the developer and spoke in favor. He said they are planning to improve Duskmoore Drive overall by doing a traffic study, which is currently ongoing. Braun said the developers plan to install curb and gutter, sidewalks, improve drainage, and upgrade the road itself. 

“We did receive a utility letter from the City of Warner Robins that they can serve this area, so when we talk about the annexation requirements for a piece of property, we do have the ability to have utilities provided to us by the city,” he said. “We are located on a city road which is Lake Joy, and we feel like we have met the criteria for annexation for this northern piece overall.” 

Braun assured the Board that the developer is willing to comply with the Warner Robins Planning Commission’s recommendation for the property to be zoned R-2. 

The Board concurred unanimously with this particular annexation request. 

The second request was for another property on Duskmoore/Lake Joy containing 7.45 acres. The proposed rezoning on this parcel will go from County R-1 to City R-3/C-2/C-3. The request also stated the property would establish inter-parcel connectivity with the property to the south. 

Dekker again spoke against and shared their concerns that the south side of Duskmoore is similar to those on the north side, but said it may be more concerning since the property is downgrading from R-3 zoning as well as C-2 and C-3, which is general commercial. 

“The inclusion of R-3 housing and commercial will absolutely violate the character and integrity of the neighborhoods that are connected to Duskmoore and all around that area,” he said. “The addition of commercial institutions connected to residential areas has been widely demonstrated to increase criminal activity as well as present quality of living issues including late hours of noise and light pollution.” 

Dekker pointed out the interconnectivity to the south. He said the request does not mention whether or not there will be access to the commercial from Duskmoore. 

“If there is commercial from Duskmoore, that would obviously increase and create massive problems at that intersection,” he said.  

Braun pointed out that the commercial lots will have their own drainage and be responsible for their own water quality. 

“When you look at the overall development here, this does comply with the joint comprehensive plan of 2022 as we’re in the in-town corridor section along Lake Joy Road which does encourage mixed use of residential and commercial development,” he said. 

Braun also mentioned that a traffic light may be installed with this development as well. Commissioner Tal Talton commented that he would like to see the traffic study completed and the results before proceeding with the development to determine if a traffic light is warranted. 

Commissioner Gail Robinson questioned why the developer had requested C-3 zoning. Braun responded that there is an opportunity with residential lofts along with C-3 rezoning. 

Commissioner Shane Gottwals described this request as a lot messier than the previous one and said he has gotten a lot of concerns about annexing Duskmoore Drive. 

“We are aiming for the best development possible, and we want to do whatever we are allowed to do in that process,” he said. “I do think some additional work is needed. 

The Board tabled the annexation request. 

The next Houston County Commissioners meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 18, at the Houston County Annex, located at 200 Carl Vinson Parkway. The full agenda of the meeting can be found at www.houstoncountyga.gov/minutes/2025-11-04%20Department%20Head%20Copy.pdf