Commissioners learn sustainment and remember the flood of 1994 

PERRY—In their most recent meeting on Tuesday, July 9, the Houston County Board of Commissioners first learned about Col. Jake Elsass’s military career. 

Elsass has been in the military for 22 years and has been in sustainment for most of his time served. 

“I started out at the Tinker Air Logistics Complex in Oklahoma City and since then I’ve had two assignments in maintenance and this is now my second assignment here in Warner Robins,” he said. 

He has been at Robins Air Force Base for six years. 

“Middle Georgia is my home and Middle Georgia is where I’m going to stay,” he said. “ I really, truly appreciate this community.” 

Elsass is the site director of engineering at Robins Air Force Base and the deputy director of engineering of the Air Force Sustainment Center. 

He said we are entering an era of great power competition similar to the Cold War.  

“We’ve been fighting terrorism, extremists, and small skirmishes around the world for the last 20 years,” he said. “While all that has been going on these past 20 years, we are now looking at our big competitors and that’s China, Russia and Iran.” 

According to Elsass, his duty as director of engineering is to lead a lot of change and bring the military into the 21st century. He has also been working on many initiatives to help with this, one of which is digital material management. 

“We’re bringing the Air Force, the maintenance at Robins Air force Base and at the other air logistics complexes into the 21st century,” he said. “We are looking to use a lot of the big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning and other 21st century technologies to help us maintain and sustain the aircraft that are out there that we fight every day.” 

Elsass is also the functional director for over 2,000 scientists and engineers at Robins Air Force Base. 

“I’m hiring about 200 plus scientists and engineers every year,” he said. “It is a big responsibility and as part of that, I work with the different colleges.” 

Elass also works with the STEM Programs. He said he even works with K – 12 students to get them interested in technology and see the fun things science and engineering can do. 

“We like to develop the students and the technology,” he said. “For retention, it is a lot better to actually grow the talent locally, have them go to school locally and then hire them locally to keep them in Middle Georgia.” 

The Commissioners issued a proclamation recognizing Abi Bragg, who will compete in the Distinguished Young Women of Georgia competition on Saturday, July 13. 

“This proclamation talks about Abi’s very distinguished career as a thespian at Houston County High School and also in her academics and also  just out in the community which includes everything you do to try to encourage other people to get involved in those activities,” Chairman Dan Perdue said. “We are so proud of you and thrilled that you get to represent us.”

The Commissioners also showed a video presentation of the 30th anniversary of the Flood of 1994. To watch the video, click here.

There were many county employees in attendance who endured the Flood of 1994. 

“This county owes the people who stepped up during that time an awful lot,” Purdue said. “We wanted to say thank you.”

Moving on to new business, the Board concurred with the annexations of properties located on Moody Road and on 113 North Amanda Place. 

“I will add that North Amanda Place is a county road and it is predominantly residential,” Perdue said. “I don’t know what the overall plans for this parcel are, but if there were plans for a commercial curb cut on this parcel, it would need to come before this body for a waiver of our ordinance which restricts commercial curb cuts on primarily residential county roads.” 

The Commissioners allowed a public comment period for all of the annexation items. The annexations of the properties located on 2717 Highway 127 and 727 Old Perry Road were grouped together and were a hot topic of discussion. Citizens who were for and against these annexations expressed their thoughts. 

The land owner’s daughter supports her mother’s decision to sell the place where they grew up. 

“As proposed we request that the Commissioners concur with the City of Warner Robins Planning and Zoning Commission’s decision to annex this approximately 13 acres located at 2717 Highway 127 and the 727 Old Perry Road into the City of Warner Robins and reclassify them for further developments that are currently not available under their current and present zoning,” the daughter said. 

According to the daughter, her mother has lived on the property for 57 years and has relinquished property from all three sides during her ownership. 

“Now the time has come for my mother to release the property to another owner because she can’t continue to care for it as she would write for it to be done,” she said. “It’s time for this land that she has invested in and maintained for 57 years to now take care of her needs, and this Board can do just that. Before you, you have a legal owner who is willing to sell her property to a capable and local developer who desires to create new businesses at this location.” 

A resident on Old Perry Road stated her opposition. She represented over 2,400 citizens who signed a petition opposing this action. 

“As acknowledged in December by the Planning and Zoning Chief of Warner Robins, this request is, in fact, by definition, spot zoning,” she said. “Approval would create a city C-2 island that is incompatible with the surrounding agricultural residential properties and home sites.”

The citizen said there is overwhelming traffic flow and serious safety issues on Highway 127 and Old Perry Road. 

“In summary, we are strongly opposed to the annexation of the spot rezoning application,” she said. “It will further deteriorate our community, subject our residents to a commercial activity prohibited within the City of Warner Robins, devalue our properties, decrease our quality of life, further endanger lives from the overcapacity roadways and jeopardize personal and property safety relying on the city’s geographically distant first-responders.” 

Commissioner Shane Gotwalls, who headed these two annexation items, shared his thoughts. 

“I definitely see the merits with both sides of this, I really do, as I’ve spent more time on this issue than any other except for property reevaluations,” he said.  “Nothing has changed since the last time we saw this property, but now we’ve received the approval from the Warner Robins Planning and Zoning.” 

For the property on Highway 127, Gottwals said he is convinced of the legal propriety. 

“That is a really big deal for concurrent votes,” he said. “There’s not too much of a question on its legal propriety.” 

The motion to concur with the annexation of 2717 Highway 127 was carried unanimously by the Board. 

For the property on Old Perry Road, Gotwalls also thinks both sides have valid points. 

“I do think that this property is so densely packed with residences as it’s not so rural to receive a development like this because of what’s available within that reasonable driving distance. Commercial development at this property being inevitable is something I am not convinced of. I’m voting on this based on what I believe it is, and I do believe it is spot zoning.” 

Gottwals then presented a motion to nonconcur with the 727 Old Perry Road annexation. The motion was carried unanimously. 

“Commissioner Gottwals, I appreciate your thorough assessment of this, and I think it very much reflects the conflict that many of us feel about it and you did a good job in presenting that,” Commissioner Mark Byrd said. 

The next Houston County Commissioners’ meeting will be held July 23, 5 p.m., at 200 Carl Vinson Parkway. To view the minutes of this meeting in full, go to houstoncountyga.org/commissioner/meeting-minutes.cms.