Lehigh County News

The Annual Pennsylvania Wild Turkey Sighting Survey, which began Tuesday, aims to track population trends across the state for a bird that once almost went extinct in the U.S.

The gunman showed up uninvited at a gathering outside a borough home late on the Fourth of July, borough police said. He fled after shooting three people as well as apparently accidentally shooting himself in the leg, the police chief said. The 18-year-old is being charged with several assault and weapons crimes.

There are 51 stops on this year’s trail. In its eighth year, the trail is focused on celebrating local creameries across the state while driving business during the summer months.

Legislators worked to establish penalties for xylazine use and trafficking in an attempt to lessen its presence in Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply. Some say doing so made way for a new, unclassified veterinary tranquilizer to take its place — medetomidine.

The tax and spending plan drew praise from Republicans for lowering taxes and funding border security, but Democrats condemned it for slashing Medicaid coverage and raising the deficit.

In a move that Santander Bank said aligns with the financial institution's digital shift nationwide, seven Lehigh Valley branches will be sold to Community Bank. Branches will remain open and employees will be offered continued employment during the transition, which is expected to complete by the end of the year,

South Whitehall Township's board of commissioners voted Wednesday to purchase upgraded radios for first responders in the township through a five-year payment plan provided by Lehigh County.

Nearly a year after the Biden administration designated xylazine as an "emerging threat" to the United States, Gov. Josh Shapiro classified it as a schedule III drug, making unauthorized possession a crime in Pennsylvania. Experts say the move has partly served to clear the way for new illicit substances to enter the drug market.

Allentown's Redevelopment Authority is applying for up to $2.5 million that could be used to rehab 10 single-family homes for low-income residents.

Despite not being approved for human consumption, veterinary tranquilizers are infiltrating the illicit drug supply in Pennsylvania. Harm reduction specialists and health care professionals say these overdoses can't be approached solely with naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug.

The monthly report from the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors shows home sales down 32 percent in September from September 2022. Low inventory and higher mortgage rates are to blame, officials say.

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture's “PA Pumpkin Palooza: Where Gourds Go Glam” contest has been extended to Oct. 23. Winners will be announced on Halloween.

Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong proposed his $520 million spending plan in August, and commissioners appear ready to approve it without major changes.

Incumbent Daniel Buglio is pitting his quarter-century of work across various roles in the office against Dr. Joseph Zitarelli, who says a “medical expert” should hold the position.

More than 1,336 acres across the commonwealth were preserved. Here are the Lehigh Valley farms now safe from development.

A seat on the Upper Macungie Township Board of Supervisors is up for election on Nov. 7. The candidates are Democrat Jeff Fleischaker, an attorney, and Republican Greg Wheeler, an emergency medicine doctor.

Barktoberfest at Grange Park will be held this Sunday after the forecast predicted rain all afternoon Saturday.

An incorrect set of instructions was included with mail-in and absentee ballots mailed to Lehigh County voters on Oct. 9. The error with the first ballot mailing has been corrected for subsequent mailings.

The Upper Macungie Planning Commission will discuss a plan for a manufacturing facility at 110 PA Route 100. A 150,000-square-foot warehouse has been proposed at the same site.

Western Lehigh Services, a commercial landscaping and snow management firm, is planning expansion into a new location in Lower Macungie Township.

A proposal for a 150,000-square-foot warehouse may move forward in a compromise between Upper Macungie Township, warehouse developer Prologis and nearby hotel Fairfield Inn & Suites.

PennEnvironment released data showing Pennsylvania ranks near the bottom when it comes to the growth of wind energy, solar power, energy storage and other renewable energy metrics over the last decade.