Templeton — Carrie Novak, chair of the Templeton Agricultural Commission, said Oct. 6 the commission has applied for two grants to expand the community garden at the senior center and is coordinating the project with the Templeton Council on Aging.

Novak spoke during an informational meeting held without a quorum; no new decisions were made. "I have applied for 2 grants, 1 from the Community Foundation, which we should hear maybe 2 weeks, and then the other was from the, town of Templeton with community preservation funds," Novak said. She said the commission will not "double dip" if both awards come through and that unused town funds would be returned.

The expansion is tied to volunteer support and the commission’s broader goal of intergenerational activity. Novak said she met with the senior-center council the week after a Sept. 25 special meeting she convened to ask the commission for permission for the chair to sign grant documents. "I didn't want them to feel like we were taking over. I didn't want them to feel like they were getting pushed out," Novak said of the meeting with the Council on Aging.

Novak described the planned new section as a place for families to use on weekends and evenings while retired volunteers would help seniors during daytime hours. She noted that project costs could change and that additional funding sources might be used only as needed.

Because the Oct. 6 session lacked a quorum, Novak said the meeting was informational and that formal approvals would wait for a future meeting. The commission set its next regular meeting for Dec. 1 and said it would adjust the schedule if there were no topics or if weather intervened.

The commission encouraged residents with questions or suggestions to contact Novak via Facebook or YouTube comments while the grant applications are pending.