East Penn News

President Joe Biden is expected to talk about small businesses and the economy during a visit to the Lehigh Valley today. Here's a roundup of the details.

Expect delays on Route 22, Interstate 78 and several other routes as President Joe Biden makes his second visit to the Lehigh Valley as president. He's expected to go to several local businesses in the afternoon.

Police declined to provide any additional information, but the rumor mill has the president stopping in at least one local business on his visit to the Lehigh Valley on Friday. East Penn and several other school districts plan to dismiss students early.

Author Brad Meltzer came to Allentown to promote the newest iteration of the now 10-year-old Ordinary People Change the World series of children's books.

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

As 2023 draws to a close, lehighvalleynews.com offers a retrospective of a variety of stories about people, places and things that make the Lehigh Valley special.

The borough has not raised taxes since 2014, but borough officials say running pre-coronavirus pandemic revenues against post-pandemic expenses and trends is no longer sustainable.

The ski slopes just southeast of Lehigh County announced it would shut down at 3:00 p.m. Tuesday, awaiting colder weather to make snow

It's a Festivus for felines! Emmaus cat boutique Purr Haus hosted a Festivus celebration on Saturday, Dec. 23 to collect contributions for local rescue Ruff Life, with a them of everyone's favorite fake holiday.

After months of dispute between the Macungie Volunteer Fire Department and the Borough of Macungie, the Lower Macungie Fire Department will be the new fire service for the borough starting in January.

Attendees will receive a piece of artwork during the benefit, which takes place Friday at the JuxtaHub.

Lisa VanArsdale, a local podcaster and comedian, will perform her one-woman show on Sunday, Feb. 23.

A draft version of East Penn School District's budget for the 2025-2026 school year includes a 0.84-mill tax hike. The district has raised property taxes nine times in the past 10 years.

Restaurants will offer “an irresistible variety of soups" during the Emmaus Soup Crawl, scheduled to run from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Ron W. Beitler is seeking reelection to the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners, he announced in a news release Tuesday.

Joshua and Tracy Dechant were charged Sunday with two felony counts each, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said in a release.

Emmaus is one step closer to remediating two of its PFAS-contaminated wells. PFAS are also called "forever chemicals" because they are slow to breakdown in the environment and are linked to a variety of health issues.

The new plan, presented to Lower Macungie Planning Commission on Tuesday, now consists of 13 homes in Cherry Ridge Estates, instead of the original 20.

Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong, with less than a year left in his term, emphasized the need for nonpartisan cooperation, funding and "not being a lame duck" toward the end of his service during a visit to Emmaus Borough Council. He also brought a funding announcement.

The borough heard from five passionate applicants, some brand new to politics — and rejected them all in favor of an eight-year council veteran. Still, they encouraged the other applicants to run for election and even offered to help with paperwork.

The money, administered by the National Park Service, along with $1,850,000 already committed by Lehigh County, will be used to replace the Cast House roof. Other work will focus on water infiltration of the furnace and rehabilitation of related buildings.

LehighValleyNews.com’s top stories of 2024 reflect a mix of community concerns, business developments, and breaking news. The stories were selected based on those that were most popular, drawing the most readers this year.