Issue link: http://maconmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1518483
April/May 2024 | maconmagazine.com 59 three council members were sworn in. The tradition during the celebration had been that the mayor would be first to cut the cake. Patrick broke that tradition. "Each of us held hands together to cut the cake. And that was Day One, that I'm a team player, and I am just like you. It helped getting the rapport I needed, so when it came to the big ideas, I had the rapport I had built, and it made the journey very easy." Additionally, the tradition of previous mayors, according to Patrick, was to poll members of council to urge them to support a measure on the agenda before the meeting. "I changed to talk about all my stuff, up front, in our pre-council meeting, she said. "Everybody would hear the same thing at the same time," before setting the agenda. C O M M E RC IAL C I RC L E For nearly six decades, Commercial Circle has been in decline. Past Warner Robins mayors' dreams of creating a "downtown" centered on Commercial Circle. Unfortunately, efforts to revitalize the area had not made it past the planning easel, until now. "It was a selfish thing because it was something I wanted in my forever home, but it was [also] a community thing. I know the data supports that if we have a downtown, it's going to thrive. I came in very aggressive, and thankfully, the council was right with me. I told them, this is how we're going to do it, and they believed me." How did she do it? With SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) funds. That dream came closer to reality when she announced during her "State of the City" address that the city now controls 81 percent of Commercial Circle property. S E C O N D T E R M D R E AM S At the end of her first term, she hopes to break ground on the downtown redevelopment district which includes Commercial Circle. Council also approved a blight task force that will be charged with taking an inventory of blighted properties that must be renovated or demolished. She also hopes to open the city's first homeless shelter, Haven Hope House, by April. Other goals include an Innovation Center, recreation upgrades, Vietnam and Gulf War Veterans Memorial, city animal shelter, and amphitheater. She wants the city to be known for signature events such as the International Experience, the Independence Day Celebration, and the Christmas Parade. She wants Warner Robins to be a "Center of entertainment and a destination for cities outside of our own. We want them to come here and have a great experience," Patrick said. F O R T H E F U T U R E "Some say, 'there is no way a female should be running the city.' You are graded much harder than Mayor Patrick plans on running for reelection in 2025. If you are eligible to vote in Warner Robins, voice your approval or opposition at the polls in November 2025. Visit vote.gov to register. "Some say, 'there is no way a female should be running the city.' ... I have to prove that I belong here so the next person will have the will to try." your [male] counterparts because of your minority status," Patrick stated. Clifford Holmes, the city's longest-serving councilman who served as interim mayor in 2008, said there was some resistance at the beginning of her term to Mayor Patrick, mainly from the old guard aligned with the previous mayor, but he gives Patrick nothing but praise. "She has earned that. She listens to you and she doesn't sit on it. When she was elected, I told her that I don't fool with sinking ships. I'm on this ship and would do everything to make sure our ship is successful." Patrick has given Holmes a nickname: "The Godfather." "We are a team. She has brought that about," Holmes said. "I have to prove that I belong here so the next person will have the will to try," said the mayor. It may be hard to find anyone who believes more than Patrick that, "The city of Warner Robins is the best place to live, work, and play in the state of Georgia." ABOVE Patrick speaks to reporter Charles E. Richardson at her desk. LEFT Patrick stands at her mayoral podium in Council chambers.