Honesty Zone: How are you feeling about all this growth in Cookeville?

[tragenvol]

Originally Posted by rdix2501

I have just check Tennessee Tech University Enrollment by Level and Unit Trends and in 2008 Tech had 10,793 students enrolled and it maxed out in 2011 with 11,768 total enrollment but the enrollment has declined by 7.4% over the past 3 years. In the Fall of 2017 1,644 of Tech enrollment are from Putnam county, so I'm curious how many Tech graduates actually call Cookeville home after graduation that are not from Cookeville.

Tennessee Promise and Reconnect have pushed more students to community colleges and away from the universities.

I think the enrollment data should be mined for how many Upper Cumberland students make up Tech's enrollment rather than limiting to only Putnam County. However, of those students not from the Upper Cumberland, I would guess that a only small percentage of Tech graduates call Cookeville home after graduation...if I had to guess, I would guess no more than five percent....and that may be on the high end.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by WriteWoman1

Be honest now...Are you natives and long-term residents tired of "outsiders" coming in and spoiling everything?

I'm wondering how ya'll are feeling about the growth of Tennessee in general and Cookeville in particular.
Getting sick of the growth?

DH, kids, and I currently live in a very rapidly growing place too. New buildings and houses/apartments/condos are popping up like dandelions. All the growth is good for the economy, but the traffic, crowds, construction, over-burdened classrooms, noise, and the dust (we live in a barren landscape) are hard on the soul.

We want outta here--but in our escape will we be (ironically) contributing to the very same problems in Cookeville that we're trying to escape from here?

We've been trying to move to Tennessee for years. We have long loved the natural beauty, the history, the culture, the music, the faith, the hospitality, the political philosophy (in general), and the positive vibe of Tennessee. We feel we should have been born in Tennessee--or at least moved 23 years ago.

Now, my husband's company is transferring him to the "Nashville area" and we're so excited! He has to be within an hour of the Nashville Airport, but I don't want to live in or around a big city (as awesome as Nashville may be), so Cookeville is number one on our short list. Plus, my sister-in-law moved to Oakridge a year ago, so Cookeville is the closest we can get to her.

Thanks for all the great information contributed here and for your willingness to help others who want to move to your city. I've been lurking for a while.

Can't wait to hear what ya'll have to say. I really want to hear your differing perspectives on the pros and cons of Cookeville being "USA's 8th fastest growing micropolitan area."

I'm a fairly recent transplant myself (almost 5 years). I've got friends who are old-timers including some whose families have been in the area since before the Civil War, and I've got friends who are recent transplants, too.

Among my friends, I haven't heard a single person lament Cookeville's recent, rapid growth. On the contrary, they like the direction the city is headed with a thriving downtown, growing retail options, more good restaurants, and better jobs. Some of the old-timers are glad that their kids and grandkids are more likely to find good-paying jobs in Cookeville and are thus less likely to move away. And even transplants who moved to Cookeville more than, say, 6 years ago are giddy at the changes in downtown which now has one of the lowest vacancy rates in the state (ie, no more boarded-up or empty storefronts) and is home to some really neat stores, galleries, and fantastic eateries.

I have seen the occasional naysayer make posts on the mayor's Facebook page, but they're few and far between and are usually the types of posts you'd expect: more traffic, higher prices, more crime. Some say things like "I don't want Cookeville to become like Nashville!" which is absurd since Cookeville will never be like Nashville, certainly not in our lifetime nor in the lifetime of our grandchildren. At any rate, for those of us who have lived in cities that have legitimate problems with traffic and crime, those types of comments seem rather silly; some people will make negative statements no matter what.

I think it's worth noting that while Putnam County is, by far, the fastest growing county in the 14-county region and is experiencing record construction, it's not the go-go growth-at-any-cost that other places (such as suburbs of Nashville and Austin) are experiencing. For example, Putnam County is able to keep up with school enrollment growth rather well; there's not a single portable classroom in the county, and the school board is already in the planning stages of adding a new elementary school and possibly even a new high school to accommodate the growth in the Cookeville area. Because the growth is more manageable than what's going on in some of Nashville's suburbs, the county is able to increase its budget, including for the schools, without a tax increase. Same for the city. Who knows what will happen next year, but it's been several years since there's been a property tax increase.

So to answer your question: no, I don't think many locals are regretting the recent growth spurt. So come on over! Cookeville is a wonderful and very attractive community with a lot to offer. I guess it was bound to get "discovered" at some point, and it's fun to be a part of it.

[JRR]

We actually considered retiring to the city in Ohio where my wife was brought up, so as to be near family. Then we thought harder on that. Population is 22,000 vs 25,000 in 1960. Economic fortunes are pretty much tied to farming and a couple of manufacturing plants in the area. Both of those have their ups and downs. Nothing much to keep the kids there; those with any kind of ambition are gone as soon as they can work out a plan. Rest are pretty much the born there, live there, die there (most of my wife's family is an example) which does keep the population reasonably stable. Business are pretty static; some come and some go but in the end not much change. Most new residential construction (which isn't too much) is on the side of town nearest Columbus for the people who want to live the rural life and make the slog to Columbus every day. Property taxes are higher than here as there isn't much growth to pay into the kitty. Crime is much worse than here.

We went up for a week at Christmas and on the way back we discussed the difference between there and Cookeville. Cookeville just seems so much more vibrant and livable. Her town was kind of shopworn and dingy. My wife remarked how she was so grateful that we landed where we did vs her moving back home.

[justindb29]

Originally Posted by rdix2501

Cookeville is not tapping into Tennessee Tech resources enough otherwise Tech graduates wouldn't leave Cookeville as much as they do now even though Cookeville and the Upper Cumberland is very pretty and relaxing. STEM related positions is the future and will continue to be the future for many years to come. The only way that Cookeville can lower the poverty rate and continue to bring in more young thriving families to bring in higher paying positions and less retail related positions. Manufacturing will also continue to be automated by technology and plus companies will always find ways to cut cost even if it calls for outsourcing positions.

I have just check Tennessee Tech University Enrollment by Level and Unit Trends and in 2008 Tech had 10,793 students enrolled and it maxed out in 2011 with 11,768 total enrollment but the enrollment has declined by 7.4% over the past 3 years. In the Fall of 2017 1,644 of Tech enrollment are from Putnam county, so I'm curious how many Tech graduates actually call Cookeville home after graduation that are not from Cookeville.

I'm not originally from Cookeville but I graduated from Tech, got married to a local girl, and moved away for a couple years. We moved back after two years, in 2006, and have been here ever since. I wouldn't have it any other way. Plus I drive to the Nashville area for work at least three days a week. I appreciate all of the growth in the area. I complain about all of the traffic, but it's more of an annoyance than anything. I've lived here long enough to know all of the city streets to drive to avoid the most high traffic areas.

[scorpsman]

Originally Posted by rdix2501

I'm a Tennessee Tech Alumni and I left Cookeville in 2009 but I do visit sometimes. I'm actually impressed with how Cookeville is slowly starting to diversify more away from just the Services and Manufacturing Industries. The only reason that I left Cookeville for the big city life of Dallas, TX is due to the lack of technology based positions. I have been keeping a close eye on the job posting for SAIC current positions and waiting for something that matches my skillset. I'm also trying to gather a list of other technology based companies in Cookeville.

#WingsUp

I'm not sure what you are looking for, but keep REI in Algood on your watch list.

https://reiusa.net/company/careers/

[Veracity]

outsider spoiling things here...sorry.

As for growth? For any city it is a positive. They just need to keep up.

[WriteWoman1]

Thanks for the thoughts, experiences, and perspectives. It's always interesting to know what people think about growth. Always pros and cons to everything...

[Pameladeville]

Originally Posted by JimStoCookville

I will second that. Just 3 months for me.

But I came to escape extreme Liberalism and hopefully support Traditional Living and Values.

We are looking to do the same thing, escaping Austin, Texas. What is your opinion of Cookeville in that regard, thus far?

[JimStoCookville]

I lived in Austin during the '80s before it became Liberal SF, Texas.
You should just love Cookeville.