WOODSTOCK — In the wake of the pharmacy in the Ottauquechee Health Center closing earlier this year, one Woodstock resident has proposed a modern approach to assist those who want to continue picking up their prescriptions locally.

Todd Erceg asked the Woodstock Selectboard Tuesday to issue a letter of support for an $180,000 Northern Border Rural Commission grant he hopes to obtain to help bring the service back to town.

“What it would be is not a pharmacy, but a distribution center where medications would come in,” said Erceg, founder of the Prosper Valley Farmer Collective, which works to secure agricultural grants locally.

The Smilin’ Steve’s pharmacy inside the Ottauquechee Health Center operated as a small retail business with a pharmacist on site. The store closed last month along with two other Smilin’ Steve’s locations in Springfield, Vt., and Ludlow.

Instead, Erceg has suggested an automated lock box system for people to pick up their current prescriptions, with telehealth capabilities for those who wish to consult a physician while there.

“Anything else, I think, would take a lot longer,” said Erceg, referring to the possibility of opening a regular pharmacy.

Erceg’s proposed location is the suite at 32 Pleasant Street where Smilin’ Steve’s operated for five years until it closed on May 15 due to what an owner, Jeff Hochberg, described as unforeseen circumstances without specifying exactly what they were, the Valley News reported at the time.

Selectboard member Dick Sweeney asked how the locker system would safeguard mistakes, such as medicine going in the wrong box, which is a common issue in mail delivery. Erceg responded that the project is still in preliminary stages, and mitigating those risks will come later.

The first step is submitting an application for the $180,000 grant, which is due June 30. If awarded, it would cover the cost of infrastructure, Erceg told the Selectboard. A second grant could go toward administrative costs.

He hopes Dartmouth Health, which operates the Ottauquechee Health Center clinic, will act as a partner for deliveries and telehealth communication.

Dartmouth Health is aware of the proposed grant and has a meeting scheduled for June 22 to determine its role in supporting the medication hub as a possible option for patients in the Woodstock area, Chief Pharmacy Officer Keith Thomasset said in a Thursday statement.

“Our health system remains committed to working on a solution to provide patients with needed services and access to medications in a sustainable and affordable way,” said Thomasset.

Erceg believes this system could serve other rural towns in the region, following several pharmacy closures in recent years, including all six Upper Valley Rite Aids, which left Windsor and Bethel without a pharmacy.

“Anybody can use it,” said Erceg.

Selectboard member Gay Travers, while supportive of the idea with residents’ current needs in mind, expressed concern that implementing a non-interactive system may discourage a real pharmacy in the future.

Pleasant Street resident Eliza Brown, 67, thinks Erceg’s proposal sounds like a great option for those in her situation who want to walk over to pick up medicine. Brown liked the convenience of Smilin’ Steves, and the fact that they provided other, over the counter products she needed.

She no longer drives and recently switched over to Walmart in Lebanon, but her brother in Sunapee will have to bring her there or pick it up for her.

But resident Sarah Wian, 88, is apprehensive of the idea.

“It just sounds so strange to me. I don’t know what to think,” Wian said, adding that she might prefer postal delivery directly to her home because it’s more personal.

Since Smilin Steve’s Woodstock closure, Wian has made plans to switch over to the remaining Rutland location and receive her medicine by mail, she said Wednesday by phone. She worries, however, about deliveries from a place she’s never visited sent by a pharmacist she’s never met.

Wian liked Smilin’ Steve’s in Woodstock because the employees were friendly and familiar.

“It was shocking and it still just doesn’t seem quite real that they aren’t there anymore,” said Wian.

While the Selectboard did not make a decision on providing a letter immediately upon request at the Tuesday meeting, Municipal Manager Eric Duffy said there seemed to be an “expressed genuine support for this idea.”

Duffy intends to reach out with an offer to write a letter on the town’s behalf. If formal support specifically from the Selectboard is preferred, they will need to vote on it, he explained in a Thursday email.

The current timeline created by Erceg anticipates a launch of the medication access hub in July 2027.