Lehigh County News

National politics often makes headlines, but former Bethlehem mayor Bob Donchez says municipal government impacts its residents more. This week on Political Pulse, host Tom Shortell dives into what goes on inside local government with Donchez.

Lehigh Gap Nature Center from Feb. 14-16 held its annual Lehigh Gap Area Feeder Watch. The long-term research project focuses on monitoring winter bird populations.

Increased stress due to everyday life, like politics or the economy, coupled with habitual, risky behaviors distracting the driver from the road, can create a slippery slope, ripe for crashes, experts said. Plus, those risky behaviors are far more common than the average driver would think.

Organizations such as colleges, local governments and non-profits are encouraged to apply for funding under Congress's Community Project Funding program. The Lehigh Valley has secured tens of millions in funding through federal discretionary spending in recent years.

The Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital on Monday received a check in the amount of $114,676 from Spirit Halloween, a national costume retailer, for its Child Life Program. The amount increased the retailer's donation to the program over $1 million since 2012.

Aleah Nothstein, of Boot Scootin' with Aleah, teaches line dancing in New Tripoli and Bethlehem with her beau, DJ Mullet.

An influx of residents and warehouses have made highways in Lehigh and Northampton counties more crowded. An analysis by LehighValleyNews.com finds some stretches of road have experienced increases of 40% to 50% in traffic volume, with Route 33 overtaking Interstate 78 as the region's second-busiest highway.

A recent bald eagle rehabilitation and release is a bright spot amid a dangerous time for bald eagles in the Lehigh Valley and the rest of the commonwealth. Bird flu continues to threaten wild bird populations, causing more than a dozen bald eagles to be euthanized across Pennsylvania.

A five-part series this week will explore traffic and transportation issues in the Lehigh Valley. Increasing traffic volume, dangerous driving and insufficient infrastructure are among the topics examined.

Justin Simmons, the former Republican state representative, was among three people who filed nomination papers last week to seek the party's nomination in the May 20 primary election.

The high school's Central City Project offers a monthly food pantry, drawing inspiration from the Catholic Worker Movement.

Plans for a 105 single-family home land subdivision along Rising Sun Road received a recommendation for preliminary final approval from the North Whitehall Township Planning Commission.

Carlos Landesta-Agramonte was among five people charged in the death of 25-year-old Angel Martinez-Velez, who was shot multiple times while playing basketball June 1, 2024, at Fountain Park.

Macungie residents, including a long-serving corporal of the police department, packed a borough council meeting Wednesday morning to protest a revised police internal affairs policy.

The man, whom Coroner Daniel A. Buglio identified only as John Doe, was in the front seat of the car, which slammed into the pole in the 1800 block of Flint Hill Road about 9:15 p.m.

Lehigh County Judge Thomas Caffrey said criminal dockets related to an interstate drug ring should have been unsealed weeks ago. LehighValleyLive.com, LehighValleyNews.com and The Morning Call had petitioned the court to release information pertaining to dozens of criminal defendants.

North Whitehall Township Planning Commission voted Tuesday to reject Gene Weierbach's contention that a zoning ordinance pertaining to an auto repair shop operating in a residential zone is unconstitutional.

The Kline’s Island Sewer System, or KISS, regional wastewater plan has been approved by more than a dozen Lehigh County municipalities. Now, it's up to the state Department of Environmental Protection to approve it.

Authorities are trying to sort through exactly what led to a 29-year-old man's death near South Fourth Street and Emaus Avenue. The district attorney says the victim had confronted the delivery driver whom he believed had damaged his vehicle.

St. Nick is making more than a dozen stops across the region this season, joining communities for a season of cheer. Many events are also collecting food and unwrapped toys to support local families in need.

The City of Allentown has partnered with Blue Zones Project-Allentown to promote no drinking and driving during the holiday season.

A Lehigh County judge has denied a request by Francis Anonia, the former Parkland School District performing arts administrator, to suppress videos allegedly recovered from his cell phone during an invasion of privacy investigation by county detectives.