Putnam County Sheriffs Deputies arrested a Cookeville man for the second time in two weeks on charges of trafficking methamphetamine. 39-year-old Gregory Howard arrested Tuesday after an undercover investigation found he had more than a half a kilo of meth at a Monterey home. The methamphetamine had a street value of some $60,000. Howard also had some $1,200 in cash. ... Read More »

Putnam County sales tax revenue dropped some 9.3 percent in April compared to last year. “(It’s) actually better than I thought,” Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter said. “I thought sales tax would be down more. I was guessing we’d be down in the 15 to 20 percent range.” The May report covers sales tax collections for April, when the majority ... Read More »

The 13th Judicial District Child Support office will be closed for two weeks after three employees tested positive for COVID-19. The Herald Citizen reports District Attorney Bryant Dunaway believes other employees may still test positive. The office closed on Friday. Dunaway said dockets will be impacted and some may need to be moved. Read More »

Pall Mall’s Center for Peace and Valor wants to begin building restorations and are currently raising money for the project. “Right now, what needs to be done is more fundraising,” Executive Director of the Sergeant York Patriotic Foundation Debbie York said. “We’ve completed just over $2.6 million from stabilization, maintenance and upkeep on the building.” York first laid out plans ... Read More »

A Tuesday morning wreck that closed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 for several hours has left an Arkansas woman dead. 29-year-old Jessica Maie Detter was a passenger in a car driven by 40-year-old Orrin William Burbank of Geneva, MN. The two were traveling eastbound near mile marker 276 around 5:30am Tuesday morning. According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Burbank ... Read More »

A motor vehicle crash on Interstate 40 has closed the eastbound lanes in Putnam County Tuesday morning. The incident happened just after 5:30am at mile marker 276, near the Smithville/McMinnville exit. The accident is in the Silver Point area. A lifeflight helicopter reportedly is being flown into the area. The duration of the closing remains unknown. Eastbound travelers may want ... Read More »

The new fiscal year Putnam County budget will come in about $500,000 lower than last year’s budget with no property tax increase. County Mayor Randy Porter proposed $40,034,718 in general expenditures during the new fiscal year. Porter said the department heads and elected officials worked hard to create a status quo budget. “There was a team effort put forth by ... Read More »

The Double Springs Utility District has agreed to sell the City Of Cookeville a portion of its water service area. Cookeville will pay 1.84 million for the 4.5 square miles. It includes 535 customers. City Manager James Mills said the agreement is fair to both sides. “Some of these areas like on Ridgedale (Drive) have been in the city since ... Read More »

The Putnam County Schools sent a survey to parents Monday asking them to weigh in on options for reopening schools. Director Of Schools Corby King told parents that any type of remote learning process would look much different in the fall. King said students would need to login and interact with teachers on a daily basis. Assignments would be graded. ... Read More »

Monterey’s Whittaker Park and playground will reopen Saturday, the town of Monterey announced Friday afternoon. The decision was made in consultation between the town and Putnam County Parks and Recreation. The reopening includes the playground, basketball courts, and tennis courts. Monterey Mayor Bill Wiggins said in a statement that all CDC guidelines should be followed when using facilities. That includes ... Read More »