During a meeting Monday, Feb. 9, Seven Fields Borough Council approved plans for a solar-powered communications device to be installed on the roof of the borough building.

The device, known as a Meshtastic node, allows people to send short text-style messages over long distances without relying on cellphone service. Instead, it uses radio signals to create a small local network that can be accessed by the public, including emergency responders who use the same system.

“It’s sort of like a grid-down communications tool that doesn’t rely on conventional infrastructure,” said Dean Galitsis, a council member and ham radio enthusiast who proposed the device at the meeting.

He said he would provide all the equipment and handle the installation at no cost to the borough. He noted that, because the device runs on solar power, it will not increase utility bills.

“What I was hoping for was to have something that’s a little bit more permanent in a good place and good location for everybody to use,” Galitsis said.

Council granted permission for the device to be placed on the roof through an easement agreement.

The antenna will be no more than 5 feet tall and will operate on a low-frequency radio band similar to older cordless phones, meaning it is not expected to interfere with other technology.

Galitsis also said there are multiple ways for residents to connect to the system, which include purchasing a smaller Meshtastic transceiver that attaches to a cellphone or by buying a more complex system that can be set up in a home.

More information on how to connect to the device, Galitsis said, would be released through the borough’s social media accounts and newsletter in the coming months.

“We’re definitely planning on letting people know that this is something we’re doing,” he said. “Maybe other people will get wise to it and want to do it too, and then we’ll have a nice network here.”

Galitsis added that he and a friend — another licensed amateur radio operator — would install the device in a few hours when the weather improves, likely in April or May.