The Lehighton Fire Police unit is desperately in need of members.

Lehighton Chief of Police Neal Ebbert said that of the current fire police roster, only five members are under age 70.Ebbert said he was advised by Raymond Moyer, president of the Lehighton Fire Police, that the unit will no longer assist at Lehighton Area High School football games."I am making a plea to sign up and be in the fire police," Ebbert said.He said fire police members direct traffic at accidents, fires, and other emergency scenes, as well as assist at some special events.Anyone interested in joining the Lehighton Fire Police should contact Ebbert at (610) 377-4003.In other borough matters:• Paul Mriss was appointed to serve on the Police Civil Service Commission.Borough secretary Brenda Koons said there still is a vacancy on the commission, which is responsible for compiling the list of eligible police department applicants.Any borough resident interested in serving on the commission should submit an application to Koons at the Lehighton Municipal Building.• Koons said there still exists an opening on the Lehighton Zoning Hearing Board. Anyone wanting to fill this seat should also contact Koons.• A special meeting of council will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, March 8 to discuss the creation of a Hydroelectric Municipal Authority and the future of the hydroelectric project.The project proposes the construction of a hydroelectric generating plant at Beltzville Lake by the jointure with Pohopoco Creek.• Borough manager Nicole Beckett said she is seeking a grant to upgrade the playground equipment at the Community Grove. If the grant is approved, the funding, which would involve some expenditure by the borough, would occur in 2014.• A letter was received from Towamensing Township Board of Supervisors asking for the borough's support to have the Carbon County Commissioners place more county records online. These include records from zoning officers, zoning hearing boards, and planning commissions.The council said it supports the proposal.• Judy Borger, director of planning and development in Carbon County, conducted a hearing on the 2013 Community Development Block Grant funding. She said the borough is expected to receive about $91,173.She said she was not notified when the funding will arrive and is concerned that the federal government's sequestration could reduce this amount.Pre-applications are due by Friday, March 1, she said.A second public hearing will be held either in April or May in Lehighton.