Cookeville will seek competitive bids for the sale of rights to two billboards in Highlands Business Park after rejecting previous offers that city officials considered too low.
Planning Director Jon Ward said Cookeville originally sought bids in 2020 for billboard leases along Interstate 40. The proposed agreements included an initial 10-year term with options to extend the leases up to 25 years.
“Any billboard constructed using these rights would have to be located at a legally conforming location and meet all applicable city and state regulations,” Ward said, “The sale of the rights would not guarantee approval of a particular billboard location.”
Ward said Cookeville’s zoning code limits the number of billboards within city limits to 121, potentially increasing the value of existing advertising rights. Ward said under the previous proposal, the city and county would have retained ownership and received annual lease payments.
“Rather than pursuing another long-term lease, we’re proposing to declare the city’s interest in these two billboards’ rights as surplus and offer them for sale through a competitive sealed bid process,” Ward said. “The city would accept sealed bids for each billboard right individually, so interested parties could bid on either one or both.”
Ward said the new approach allows the city to evaluate offers for each right separately before deciding whether to sell one or both. Ward said staff will coordinate with Putnam County and the city attorney before presenting bids to council for final consideration.
Ward said the sale involves billboard rights rather than physical structures or specific locations. Any company purchasing the rights would still have to find a legally compliant location and meet applicable city and state regulations.
Council members said the proposal followed inquiries from a business owner interested in purchasing billboard rights.