A statement from Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter
PUTNAM COUNTY – “Our county has been simply amazing in its response to this month’s tornado, and I am confident we will be no less amazing in our response to this virus and the changes ahead. We are all somewhat anxious, but we’re all in this together. As humans our biggest fear is the unknown, and we just don’t know what is going to happen from day to day. We all need to be patient, but we also have to be flexible and ready to change.
Currently, we have no confirmed cases of the virus in Putnam County or in the Upper Cumberland region. Hopefully, it will stay that way. However, there may be some cases in our area at some point in the future. For that reason, we continue to monitor the situation and make contingency plans. The safety and well-being of all our employees and citizens is our number one priority. I encourage you not to panic and remain calm as we work through this illness, like we have all other challenges in the past.
The people of our county and our state demonstrated tremendous resilience in the face of the tragic storms a few weeks ago. I am confident that our area will respond to the current health threat, the spread of COVID-19, in the same manner.
I ask that everyone follow the measures suggested by medical professionals for prevention, which are: If you are sick, don’t go to work; Make sure you wash your hands regularly and for at least 20 seconds; Avoid touching your face; and disinfect frequently used items and surfaces as much as possible.
According to Health Department Officials, random routine testing is not being done at this time, but could be in the future. Currently testing is being done for people exhibiting symptoms based on CDC criteria and your doctor’s judgement.
As developments progress, we will continue to communicate with you as needed. We hope and pray that you and your families will move through this troubled time as smoothly as possible.
We have always functioned as a strong county during tough times. I am equally confident that we will come through this latest challenge as a strong county.”
All Putnam County elected officials are working together to deal with the Coronavirus. Following is an update on how each office is handling issues related to COVID-19. Those elected officials are County Mayor Randy Porter, Sheriff Eddie Farris, Road Supervisor Randy Jones, Assessor of Property Steve Pierce, Circuit Court Clerk Jennifer Wilkerson, County Clerk Wayne Nabors, Clerk and Master Linda Reeder, Register of Deeds Harold Burris and Election Commission Administrator Debbie Steidl.
Putnam County Mayor’s Office: I have asked all departments to limit travel to only essential meetings and to do conference calls instead. The maintenance department has added additional cleaning/disinfecting measures to all county offices. Citizens are encouraged to call or email rather than visiting the office if possible.
931-526-2161
rporter@putnamcountytn.gov
Assessor of Property – Property owners or anyone with questions or comments regarding their property or property values are encouraged to contact the Putnam County Assessor of Property in any of the following ways rather than walk-in:
Mailing Address:
Putnam County Assessor of Property
300 East Spring Street, Room 1
Cookeville, TN 38501
Phone: 931-528-8428
Email: steve.pierce@putnamcountytn.gov
If citizens need to drop off Personal Property schedules or any other documents, please send them by mail to our office address. We also encourage all Greenbelt applications to be mailed, completed, signed and accompanied with a $12.00 check made out to the Putnam County Register of Deeds for the recording fee.
Circuit Court Clerk – Due to the order of the Tennessee Supreme Court, in person court proceedings and hearings have been temporarily suspended (with some exceptions) through March 31, 2020. If you have a case scheduled to be heard during this time, please contact your attorney for a new court date. Customers who need to pay tickets or fees on a case, credit or debit card payments can be made at www.putnamcountytn.gov/circuit-court-clerk or by calling 1-866-658-0845. Passport applications will not be accepted or processed until after March 31, 2020. Please call or email us with any questions you have.
Phone: 931-528-1508
Email: Jennifer.wilkerson@putnamcountytn.gov
Clerk and Master – Court has been canceled through March 31 per order of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Citizens who need to pay delinquent property taxes, court costs, etc., may pay them over the phone with a credit card. If you need a rescheduled court date, please call the office and we will contact the Chancellor about rescheduling.
Phone: 931-526-6321
Email: linda.reeder@tncourts.gov
County Clerk – The County Clerk’s office will run in normal mode of operation for now. The drive-thru is open every day as always for renewals only. On-line renewals will continue to be available as well as the ability for motorists to mail their renewals in for processing. All dealer transactions and financial institution transactions will be coordinated by telephone.
Phone: 931-526-7106
Election Commission Office – Registration for voting can be done online at govotetn.com
Phone: 526-2566
911 Center – The center will not be accepting visitors; if you need a new address, please call 931-646-4357.
Parks and Recreation – Sports complexes and community centers are closed until further notice. The Cookeville Community Center, which houses the distribution center for tornado survivors, remains open from 9:00am to 6:00 p.m.
Register of Deeds – We are trying to limit visits to the office at this time. If you need a copy of a document; we can mail, fax or email that document to you. You can also go to www.ustitlesearch.com and search our records. If you need to record a document, we ask if you can to please mail the document to us with a self-addressed envelope along with a check and we will record the document and then return it to you in the mail.
Mailing Address:
Register of Deeds
PO BOX 487
Cookeville, TN 38503
Phone: 931-526-7101
Fax: 931-526-7120
Email: harold.burris@vcourthouse.com
Road Department – If you have questions for the Road Department, please call or email instead of visiting the office.
Phone: 931-526-4864
Email: pcroadsupt@putnamcountytn.gov
Sheriff’s Office – Based on federal and state guidance, visitation has been suspended and all volunteer programs and other outside facility programs are suspended. Please check the Putnam County – TN – Sheriff’s Department Facebook page for regular updates.
Trustee – Tax payments can be made in the drop box outside the Trustee’s Office, online at https://secure.tennesseetrustee.org/ or by mail. If you have questions, please call the office.
Phone: 931-526-8845
