Lehigh County News

More than a half-hour of passionate pleas didn't slow down Lehigh County commissioners as they signed off on Heather Reed's promotion to lead the Child and Youth Services department, which is mired in controversy.

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.

The rapid fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban surprised a lot of Americans.

A “Code Orange” air quality alert is now in effect across the Lehigh Valley.

Allentown City Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach denies any wrongdoing after being charged with child endangerment in Lehigh County and says she has not committed any crimes.

Black fly spraying starts June 30 along the Lehigh and Delaware rivers.

In districts across the Lehigh Valley, teachers are using the next two months to help kids catch up on learning lost to the pandemic.

The issues of diversity, equity and inclusion are an essential part of the conversation around race in the Lehigh Valley and across the state. Gov. Tom Wolf tapped the head of Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley to join his commission on African American Affairs.

Tiny homes are all the rage among the boho set, but in Allentown, some community members want to build them as temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness.

It’s been a year since Allentown schools were open. When the pandemic hit, the Allentown School District sent more than 17,000 students home to grapple with learning virtually.

Microplastic contaminants have been found in 53 waterways in Pennsylvania, including in the Lehigh River, according to clean water advocacy group PennEnvironment.

WLVR’s Tyler Pratt recently spoke with Norberto, who is now home. He said the conditions and isolation at the jail in lockdown were dramatically worse than any of his previous experiences.

The Lehigh County Board of Commissioners Cedarbrook Committee was approving contracts for the long-term care facility when it was interrupted by a barrage of profane language - set to the song “Let It Go” from the Disney movie “Frozen.”

Concerned residents held a vigil outside the Lehigh County Jail in Allentown over the weekend with signs and candles to remember an inmate and correctional officer who recently died from COVID-19 and to raise awareness of what they say are dangerous conditions inside.