A referendum to allow the selling of wine in grocery stores in Algood will be on the ballot this November. Putnam County Elections Employee Candi Wilkins said a citizen’s petition was turned in by the Thursday deadline with the necessary 130 signatures. Wilkins said the office has already verified all signatures by matching names and addresses with signatures. Algood City ... Read More »

Putnam County Dispatchers answering emergency calls 99.7 percent faster than the national average. Assistant 911 Director Josh Womack told the Emergency Communications Board at its Thursday meeting that the national standard is 10 seconds. Putnam County dispatchers answer calls in 3.1 seconds. The department has maintained that average across the 44,000 calls it answered since January. “And that is because ... Read More »

Upper Cumberland Adult Abuse Coalition held the first of its new learning series, “Bits and Bites” Thursday. Committee Member Lynn Drew said the lecture highlighted information related to Alzheimer’s disease. “We feel like it’s very important to get more education and understanding out there to the community,” Drew said. “That way it kind of breaks down the stigma, and people ... Read More »

Warren County Schools have created a new position of School Safety and Security Coordinator to start on September 1st. Director of Schools Grant Swallows said that Lieutenant Ray Robinson will fill the role. He said many school districts have had a renewed emphasis on school safety, and that this position was one way to showcase what Warren Schools have already ... Read More »

Cookeville City Council and city department officials gathered Wednesday for City Council Orientation at the new Police Department Headquarters. City Manager James Mills gave an overview of city functions. He also provided new council members updates on current and future project statuses. He said there are four main issues the council is set to address in the near future, including ... Read More »

Tennessee Tech has been awarded a $3 million research grant by the National Science Foundation. The funding will help graduate and post-graduate students to identify issues at the intersection of food, energy, and water areas that they want to help solve. Chemical Engineer Professor Dr. Pedro Arce said this will be in conjunction with rural, Appalachian, or tribal communities. “Maybe ... Read More »

Former Livingston Alderman Chris Speck denied domestic violence allegations in a May 2019 incident saying if real domestic violence had occurred, he would have been arrested. District Attorney Bryant Dunaway released a letter Monday on an investigation performed by his office and agents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation into the potential failure by the Livingston Police Department to investigate ... Read More »

Putnam County’s Hawkins Crawford Road is closed to truck traffic until further notice. Road Supervisor Randy Jones said the influx of trucks going to the Academy Sports Distribution center has created safety concerns. “It keeps our stop signs torn down there, it’s a narrow turn from Highway 70 onto Hawkins Crawford and they’re going across through there,” Jones said. “The ... Read More »

Cookeville Regional Medical Center set to use telehealth services to screen psychiatric patients in the emergency department. CEO Paul Korth said currently, these patients will have to stay for long periods of time, sometimes two or three days before they are cleared to go somewhere for treatment. He said the practice could help the hospital decrease wait time by 63 ... Read More »

Excitement across the Fentress community as the County Fair continues into the week. Director Cindy Smith said good weather and good attitudes have made the first few days a success. She said of all of the events and exhibits, the best part has been seeing the community coming together. “You could put our board of directors together and you’d have ... Read More »