Dispute Over Appraisal of County Land in Putnam County, TN

Putnam County approved a resolution regarding "Project Garden," which involved 2.9 acres of county-owned property on Tennessee Avenue intended to encourage a hotel development near the county's new Expo Center. The county appointed Appraiser Monte Gaw, who valued the property at approximately $707,500. However, an adjacent landowner objects to this valuation, arguing that the appraisal ignored a hospitality valuation and relied instead on a 2022 comparable transaction for speculative industrial use.

The county is defending the appraisal used to authorize the sale and/or lease of the land. The dispute centers on whether the valuation accurately reflects the premium commercial potential of the acreage, which the county has reportedly planned for a hotel site for nearly a decade.