Lehigh County News

The Parkland School District budget that was voted on and approved Tuesday night includes a 2.5% property tax increase. The tax hike is district's highest in the past seven years, but is still the lowest millage rate in Lehigh County.

A new ArtsQuest festival that will bring three days of family-friendly music, games, food and amusements to Upper Macungie Township, announced in February as a paid-ticket event, now will be free, organizers announced.

The Borough of Emmaus has chosen to take the steps to treat its own water supply after spending over a year seeking a solution to the municipality's PFAS contamination issue

Since it's not a presidential or midterm election, the 2023 municipal primary election may have snuck up on folks. If that surprises you, here are some other things you may not know about how our local elections are run.

Gavin Holihan, the uncontested candidate for Lehigh County district attorney, has been endorsed by incumbent Republican Jim Martin and Democratic County Executive Phil Armstrong, among others.

Three candidates for the local office said they focused on juggling campaign tasks around full-time jobs in the lead-up to the primary election. All were driven by a desire to educate voters and help people understand county government and its services.

They have been working without a contract since last summer and say they are overworked and short-staffed.

National issues are seeping into local races, turning elections into proxy partisan fights over race and gender.

Local elections rarely get the same level of participation as presidential races, but the outcomes often have greater impacts on voters' quality of life.

Like all the other major cities in the Lehigh Valley, Allentown is a patchwork of neighborhoods, some with good tree cover and some without any. Officials plan to use a mapping tool as a starting point to make planting trees city-wide more equitable.

The severe storms and flash flooding of July 16 overwhelmed parts of the Slate Belt, Forks and Palmer townships and led seven Northampton County municipalities to declare disasters of their own.

Bethlehem City Council unanimously approved BPD to join other Lehigh County agencies to combat crime through the use of shared investigative data.

A judge ruled in favor of warehouse developer CRG Services Management Monday in a case against Lowhill Township, granting 'deemed approval' to a warehouse plan.

The new makerspace at Slatington Elementary School will help students learn STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) skills. It will primarily be used by an after school program called Schools & Homes In Education, or SHINE.

A Verizon cellular tower was approved at 6341 Chestnut St. in Upper Milford Township on the property of the Western District Fire Company after a heavily attended public meeting.

The combination of higher home prices and higher interest rates are making homes unaffordable for many — and putting a damper on the market.

$798,869 is set for a Turkey Hill Mini Market in Allentown off of I-78, Exit 57 and $727,420 is designated for a charging station at the Wawa off I-78 Exit 49 A-B

Dorney Park's upcoming new roller coaster Iron Menace is a multi-million dollar project that officials hope will bring attendance back to pre-pandemic levels.

North Whitehall supervisors chose a layout for the upcoming township building renovations Monday. The project’s estimated cost is just over $5 million.

Residents gave feedback for the State Route 309 Roadway Betterment Project at a plans display Tuesday.

The final plan for Timberidge Luxury Apartments on Levans Road was approved by North Whitehall's Board of Supervisors Monday.

Residents of Afton Village in Center Valley spent Tuesday cleaning up after an intense storm rushed through parts of the Lehigh Valley on Monday evening. Most of the damage was limited to toppled trees. No injuries from the storm were reported.