Cookeville Utility Department Begins Cut Offs

The Cookeville Utility Department began cutting off services Monday, and will continue this week.

24 customers were cut off Monday. City Manager James Mills said over 100 customers paid their bills in full.

“We’ve reduced the total outstanding from $134,000 approximately to about $95,000, just on the first day,” Mills said. “We expect, the customer services manager indicates, that by next week we expect to be caught back up. It’s going really well.”

Mills said he’s surprised how many paid their overdue bills in full. He said it’s not too late to set up a payment plan as long as services have not been cut off.

“Not everybody’s been cut off, we can only do so much at a time,” Mills said. “If you’re behind, especially if you’re behind multiple months, you need to come in as soon as possible to make arrangement. Once the customer is cut off, they have to pay their bill in full plus the fee for reconnection.”

Disconnections are staggered throughout the day in different districts, Mills said.