Easton News

Police have charged an Easton man in connection with a recent chop shop investigation. Angel Vidal faces several felony and misdemeanor charges as he awaits a preliminary hearing in Northampton County Prison.

Tuesday, May 20, is Primary Election Day in Pennsylvania. Several high-profile local races are on the ballot in Lehigh and Northampton counties. Check out our procrastinator's guide and Q&A.

One week after damage to underground cables caused widespread power outages on Easton's South Side, parts of the city were in the dark once again Monday.

Drivers who have been ticketed for school bus camera violations say the process to contest them needs to change. PennDOT said thousands of citations across seven Lehigh Valley school districts are still awaiting hearings.

In Tuesday's Democratic primary election, two challengers are on the ballot to face off against incumbent council members Roger Ruggles and Taiba Sultana.

Developers behind the new Easton Area School District high school presented some refinements and updates on the project plans to the school board at their Tuesday meeting.

The stage show "Sesame Street Live: Elmo and Friends Say Hello" will be performed at 6 p.m. Nov. 21 at Easton's State Theatre.

Easton Area School District's board voted in favor of a health insurance buyout option that will offer employees $6,000 in lieu of coverage, offering potentially substantial savings to the district.

Sheetz or Wawa? How do you pick a champion? While everyone has their preference, we can all safely agree that the Larry Holmes Drive Wawa in Easton is not the worst-reviewed Sheetz in Pennsylvania.

After a hearing stretching over five hours and addressing traffic and environmental concerns related to the Easton Commerce Park warehouse, Easton Planning Commission bumped a final decision to their July meeting.

Broadway's "Rock of Ages" Band features the musician case of the Broadway show playing what it calls playing "the greatest rock hits from the glam metal bands of the '80s."

The United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, in coordination with Greater Easton Development Partnership, has established the fund to help victims of Friday's devastating fire at the Hotel Hampton building, 462 Northampton St. Also, a Red Cross emergency shelter operation has been relocated.

One firefighter suffered serious injuries when he fell off a ladder escaping the fire. Several others received minor injuries. Authorities said the coroner was on scene Saturday "out of an abundance of caution" because they did not have an accurate count of people living in the Hotel Hampton building.

In December alone, there were 676 eviction filings and defaults in Lehigh County — the highest monthly total since August 2023.

In counties such as Lehigh, eviction filings have reached their highest point in years, even as rental vacancy rates have fluctuated. That apparent contradiction — rising vacancy estimates alongside persistent eviction volume — is part of a broader housing dynamic playing out across the region.

Xiaomin Fei, 34, on Thursday entered the plea in the June 3 shooting deaths of Robert and Gretchen Ackerman, Northampton County District Attorney Stephen G. Baratta announced.

Officials signed off on plans that call for 73 condominiums — 15 one-bedroom units, 36 two-bedroom units and 22 three-bedroom units — and about 2,500 square feet of commercial space.

Jack Bennett grew up in the family hardware business and went on to lead it for nearly 25 years. He was one of Easton's most prominent business leaders in the 1970s and '80s. He died Jan. 29 at age 98. Friends say he left an impression on the Downtown business community that still can be felt today.

Affected customers are being asked to enroll in interest-free payment plans so the city can recover more than $35,000 in unpaid bills, its finance director said Wednesday.

Lawmakers voted 46-1 on Senate Bill 1014, bipartisan legislation that would require public schools to adopt "bell-to-bell" policies restricting student use of smartphones and other internet-connected devices throughout the entire school day.

Alton Brown, who started the Food Network’s “Good Eats” show, will perform An Evening of Alton Brown at 7:30 p.m. April 16, the theater announced. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Jan. 30.

Allentown declared a snow emergency ahead of Sunday's major winter storm. Enforcement efforts in the city will begin Saturday morning.