Fourth-generation Templeton resident Teresa Dellaganna sat on the Pig Iron patio on July 7 looking at what remained of Templeton Feed and Grain after it caught fire over the past holiday weekend.
“I brought my computer down and just wanted to—I don’t know, it’s a weird feeling. I’m not sure what is holding me here, that I want to be here as opposed to anywhere else,” she said.
Dellaganna said she witnessed the building burn the evening of July 4, just as firefighters were responding to the call at 405 Main St.
“We stood there and watched it. We saw the first, visible flames up high,” she said. “You know, it’s a piece of the soul of Templeton, and we just sat and watched it burn. It was awful.”
According to Templeton Community Services District (CSD) General Manager Jeff Briltz, the structure caught fire around 11 p.m. that night and required the help of San Luis Obispo, Atascadero, Paso Robles, and Cal Fire firefighters in addition to Templeton’s own Fire Department. No one was hurt.
It came at a costly price too, Briltz said. The CSD board held an emergency meeting on July 6 to add $150,000 to its existing stash of $50,000 in emergency funds, which was being used to help put the fire out, to pay for mutual aid that exceeded 12 hours, and to hire a structural engineer to determine needs for the building’s demolition.
“We think that’s more than more than we need. But we’re still incurring costs,” he said.
On July 9, Briltz said the building was still smoldering. Residents posted videos on the Templeton Proud Facebook group of flames re-emerging from the structure days after it caught fire.
According to a statement from the SLO County Sheriff’s Office, surveillance footage from close to 11 p.m. on July 4 revealed four to six individuals who might be involved with the fire, but detectives are still working to identify the suspects.
Briltz told New Times that the Templeton Feed and Grain was a “majestic structure that loomed over main street” and its absence would serve as a “grim reminder” of the fire.
“It’s such an iconic image—our district’s logo includes the Feed and Grain,” he said. “It’s just part of the community.”
Since 1946, the Feed and Grain building has been a staple of Templeton’s downtown, resident Dellaganna said. Owned and operated by the Jermin family, the business manufactures and sells animal feed at wholesale.
But Dellaganna said it’s not just a building and business that has supported local farmers for decades. The iconic landmark also instilled a sense of connection among the residents, past and present.
“It’s been the backdrop of my life. It was the backdrop of my dad’s life,” she said. “I just learned recently that my great-grandfather was one of the first customers. I think he was customer number three.”
“It’s more than a building. It holds so much more,” she added.
Dellaganna said that the Jermin family was a pillar of the community. As a kid, she remembered “Mr. Jermin” teaching her about accounting by keeping a tab each year for her fair animals.
“We’d come in at the end of the season and we’d talk through our bills. … We’d settle up, and we always got our jelly candies. And they just did that for so many people in the community,” she said. “That’s the type of people they were. They bought animals at the fair; they sponsored sports teams. They are fixtures in our community, and they’ll continue to be. I know that they will.” Δ
This article appears in Jul 10-20, 2025.
