Cookeville Council Members In Favor Of Donation For TTU Stadium Upgrades

Cookeville has included some $100,000 in its new fiscal year budget to support the upgrades to Tucker Stadium

Council Member Mark Miller said that the city decided to raise its hotel/motel tax some years ago to increase its opportunities for economic development.

“We feel that Tennessee Tech and Tucker Stadium have a huge potential to bring more people to Cookeville and put more heads in beds which in turn would help that raise of the hotel/motel tax,” Miller said. “So by providing Tech with funds so they can upgrade their stadium to bring more events to Cookeville, that is why we are doing that.”

Miller said that stadium upgrades could bring back events like the Blue Cross Bowl to the city. He said that the value Tech brings to the city is an important part of why the city council wants to do what it can to support the university.

Council Member Charles Womack said that Tech is one of the greatest aspects of Cookeville. He said that helping with a portion of the stadium upgrades would serve as a win-win for both the city and the university.

“I think it’s a great deal for the city of Cookeville to help Tennessee Tech get a better stadium and use that to get more events that bring people into Cookeville where they spend money,” Womack said. “We’re making lots of money off of sales tax revenue from people passing through and coming and visiting our community. Helping Tech to have a better stadium, I think helps the economy of Cookeville.”