There will be a collection box for household essentials to help those in need inside the Polk Township municipal building in August, township officials announced Monday night.

Polk supervisors voted to participate in the Monroe County Meals on Wheels’ Household Essentials Drive.

Supervisors Chairman Brian Ahner asked the secretarial staff to make signs to hang at the Solid Waste and Recycling Center and to post information about the collection on the township’s website, https://polktwp.org.

The Household Essentials Drive is in conjunction with Monroe County Meals on Wheels Day, which is Saturday, Aug. 19 - the third Saturday of August was designated as Monroe County Meals on Wheels Day by the county commissioners in 2019.

“It is a day for our organization to not only raise funds but to also raise awareness about the important role we play in our community,” said Stacey Koeck, special events coordinator for Monroe County Meals on Wheels, in an email to the supervisors.

The collected items will go to the Client Needs Pantry, which was created when staff members realized clients were having a hard time obtaining nonfood items, Koeck said in the email.

Other business

• Solicitor Jim Fareri said an executive session was held from 6:30-7 p.m. on Monday to discuss the conditional use application submitted by Effort Solar. “No decisions were made, and no votes were taken,” he said. He and township staff were among the attendees at a public hearing last Monday. It was held at Polk Township Volunteer Fire Company, where there was space for a large crowd. No action was taken during the hearing, and it will continue Aug. 29 at 6 p.m. at the firehouse. Effort Solar’s proposed project would install solar panels near the intersection of Bear Road and Long Mountain Road. The solar panels would have a fence around the perimeter and trees on the outside of the fence would act as a buffer.

• Supervisors voted to spend about $1,200 for a panel with drop box for the front door of the municipal building. This will be used for items such as zoning paperwork after business hours.

• Zoning officer Tracy Herman asked the supervisors to consider including a donation for the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PSPCA) in the 2024 budget. Recently, the agency responded to a residence on Long Mountain Road, where as many as 200 animals were taken from the home. Some animals were deceased.

• Boy Scout Claudio T. Stabile announced the grand opening of his astronomy observatory on the North Field, which is next to the municipal building. The special event is at 4 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18. He will start with a daytime viewing of the sun using solar telescopes and then switch to nighttime sky viewing. Aug. 19 is the rain date. Claudio and his father, Claudio M. Stabile, thanked residents and businesses for sponsoring his project. He surpassed his goal of $3,000 and raised more than $3,800. The extra funds will go toward remote sensor cameras and other security features and incorporating a 501(c) (3) nonprofit astronomy club if insurance permits, he said.