New app, higher property taxes may be in store for Warner Robins

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — The city of Warner Robins announced a new technological venture and heard concerns over a recent ordinance during their most recent city council meeting.

Also announced was a possible bump in property taxes last week. According to a release by the city, the tentatively adopted budget for this year requires a higher millage rate than the rollback rate.

This could mean up to a possible 8.17% increase in taxes for Houston County residents, and a 3.43% increase for Peach County residents.

Citizens are invited to make their concerns known at three public hearings scheduled for September. Those will take place at City Hall on Sept. 5 at noon, Sept. 13 at 6 p.m., and Sept. 18 at noon.

On the technology front, since March of this year, city leadership said the city has been working on an app meant to connect the public to city resources. During pre-council on Aug. 21, Mayor LaRhonda Patrick announced the name of the new application. A combination of two suggestions from city employees, the app will be named “Connect2WR.”

As part of an employee contest, Mayor Patrick said the city received many ideas for names before choosing their final selection and also explained the app’s purpose to The Journal.

“It connects you to everything. All of our events will be there, directory, … We’ll have a nice app, customer facing app, easy to use, easy to find information, instant communication to the public. Those are all the things our app is going to do.” Patrick said.

This app is being developed alongside another app with Simtech Solutions that will help the city in its ongoing homeless initiative. The “Connect2WR” app is tentatively set for a rollout in September and can be downloaded on the App Store and Google Play.

Finally, the city heard concerns over a recent right-of-way maintenance ordinance from a city resident.

According to the ordinance, passed in February of this year, grass between the sidewalk and street must be cut when the grass reaches a height of 10 inches. This rule applies to both property owners and tenants.

If owners or tenants are found not compliant, they have five days to mow the grass. After five days, code enforcement sends out a crew to cut the grass, at the expense of the homeowner/tenant.

Warner Robins resident Sylvia Eubanks addressed council at the most recent meeting, and mentioned that as she has gotten older, health problems make it difficult to maintain the lawn and she is concerned for those who are also elderly and can’t afford to hire outside help. Eubanks added during the meeting she and her neighbors were not notified of the change, although city leadership said in a statement they informed the public through council meetings and social media. Eubanks suggested a written letter be sent to inform for those who are not on social media.

Mayor Patrick responded, assuring Eubanks she is not alone in her concerns and they have received questions about the ordinance, planning to contact her directly that week.

Mayor and Council will meet again on Sept. 5, with pre-council meeting starting at 4:30 p.m., regular council meeting to follow. Agendas and supporting documents can be found on wrga.gov, while a live stream of the meetings can be found on the city’s Facebook page: “City of Warner Robins Government.”

HHJ News