OXFORD – Selectmen agreed Thursday to apply for a $10,000 planning grant to develop a strategy for redeveloping the Robinson Manufacturing woolen mill in the village center.

“We certainly want to continue to have a presence in town,” said John Robinson, vice president of the 150-year-old mill, which closed last fall.

Town Manager Mike Huston said the grant would provide a “very broad outline” of possible uses for the mill property, which includes large office and manufacturing spaces as well as several nonattached buildings and a large parking area.

The application is being made to the Community Planning Grant Program administered by the Department of Economic and Community Development.

“The process is very competitive,” Huston said.

In an earlier telephone interview, Barb Olson, vice president of the Growth Council of Oxford Hills, said John Robinson and his father, Joe, the president of Robinson Manufacturing, envision a mixed-use redevelopment including retail, housing and office space. The property’s buildings and its frontage on Thompson Lake make it a “huge asset” to the town, she said.

Robinson Manufacturing still retains a few employees, mostly for plant maintenance, she said. In late April, Keiser Industries began leasing one of the back buildings for constructing floor units for their modular homes, Olson said.

Selectman Dennis Sanborn said the offices at the mill are worth consideration by the town for a new town office space.

Caldwell Jackson, president of the Oxford Economic Development Committee, said the committee stands ready to provide assistance in the planning effort.

Olson said planning grants have been used by Norway to update the town’s downtown plan, by Farmington to engineer for a water line extension, by Dixfield to create a capital improvement plan for its water system, and by Livermore Falls for its downtown plan.

Community Planning Grant funds do not cover engineering, architectural and design costs for specific proposals.