Hubbardston — The Hubbardston Cultural Council voted Nov. 11 to finalize a slate of local cultural grants, approving funding for 16 projects from a competitive pool of 36 applications and setting a short calendar for administrative follow-up.

The council listed $7,717 as the pool for allocations and, after discussion about partial funding and past-year spending, approved a set of awards that funds community concerts, youth activities and small public-program requests. "We funded 16 projects," Speaker 4 said as members reviewed the totals during the meeting.

Council members relied on a ranked scoring worksheet to preserve the order they had previously developed; they discussed whether to fully fund some higher-dollar requests or split available dollars across many smaller projects. Examples discussed during the meeting included a $500 band fee for the Hubbardston Fair, a $600 Storybook Trail project and a $600 allocation for an art-coordination program; those figures reflect the amounts in the applications discussed on Nov. 11.

The council approved motions and voice votes on individual grants, repeatedly using the option to partially fund when full awards exceeded the available pot. Several motions were seconded and passed by majority voice votes; the meeting transcript records no roll-call tallies by name.

Members also agreed a practical timeline for post-vote administration: denial notices will be prepared immediately but at least one set of declines will be held until an applicant responds to questions about venue accessibility (deadline Nov. 19). Award letters were scheduled for distribution two weeks after the denial notices, tentatively on Dec. 3. "I'll do the denials for the twelfth and the awards will go out on the 26th/27th," Speaker 1 explained in the meeting before the group set the firm follow-up dates.

The council planned to generate award letters in draft form ahead of the deadline so staff can send them quickly if no challenges arise. Members also agreed that if an applicant responds asking for more funding or cannot meet conditions, the council will reconvene to reallocate returned dollars.

What happens next: Council staff will prepare denial and award communications and follow up with applicants whose events list the 1st Parish Meeting House as a venue (see related coverage below). The council has another meeting on the calendar and will use it if reallocations are necessary.