Oldham: Willow Sign Meets His Goal; Walker Not

Cookeville City Council Member Eric Walker said he is concerned a proposed Willow Avenue Gateway sign will not attract people from the interstate.

Walker said he likes the Jefferson Avenue location but feels that Willow Avenue has a very limited audience. Tennessee Tech President Phil Oldham said that signs within Cookeville, welcoming people to the city and the campus, were what he imagined when initially partnering with the city on the project.

“We know from our studies that Willow Avenue is the major thoroughfare for egress coming to the campus,” Oldham said. “So that is a very important corridor for the campus in terms of students and families.”

Oldham told council members during a Monday work session he believes the project is about a sign that welcomes people to an experience once they have already decided to come to Cookeville. Mayor Laurin Wheaton and Council Member Ali Bagci agreed that the proposed location at the corner of Willow and the I-40 Westbound exit is a good spot.

City Manager James Mills said deciding against it would likely mean starting over.

“I believe, if we don’t say this is the right location, approximate location, we’re going to have to start over,” Mills said. “Personally, I don’t recommend you do that. We’ve worked on this for over two years, maybe longer. The costs keep going up and up. We might be able to go back and do one sign, but this is the sign that Tech, the university, wants to have because this is, and I agree, Willow is the entrance off the interstate to the University.”

Oldham said getting a sign on Willow and near the interstate is challenging, but he said the chosen location gives the best chance for visibility to traffic moving in either direction.

Walker said he still believes there are great options along the interstate, but working within the bounds of what T-DOT will allow is a challenge.

“From my point of view, the original goal was to capture people from the interstate,” Walker said. “To say, ‘Hey, this is a safe place. This is going to be a nice town,’ and to get them into Cookeville and to recognize the passer-by to put us on the map.”

The council will vote Thursday.