Leslie Town Centre Working For Post-COVID Comeback

Revenue is down at least some 55 percent for the Leslie Town Centre because of COVID cancellations.

Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce CEO Amy New said that the lack of events has impacted the bottom line.

“A good reference would be that in the 4th quarter of last year, fiscal year 20, we only had six events in the entire quarter,” New said. “Whereas typically we would have 60 to 65 events. So we were not able to keep our full-time director and all of our staff that prepares those events on the payroll.”

New said they now have part-time help to assist with the few events they have scheduled. She said that people are still cautious when it comes to hosting larger events, which is another hindrance for the center.

The city has been asked to foot the bill for emergency HVAC repairs and replacements with the revenue down. New said that the past year has emphasized the need for them to save as much as they can for the future. She said that they also plan on having more safety precautions like readily available hand sanitizer and spaced-out seating to ensure the ability to host events in the future.

“We are kind of the anchor I feel like for the county in a way,” New said. “If you’re born in the 80s like me you see the Chamber of Commerce as a place that you have memories from growing up to even into your professional life and we want to maintain this anchor for our community and we would love for people to have events here, and host trainings here, and come see us.”