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.

Volunteers from Los Rebolcones Jeep Club and Las Motos Mamis handed out gifts to children at the first celebration held on the last night of Lights in the Parkway.

A landscape architecture firm is working on a 15-year master plan for Allentown's parks and open spaces.

Custodial and maintenance workers think the Teamsters could help them get a stronger contract when their current one expires in June. Allentown School District is recommending workers vote for no union representation.

Citing safety concerns, Lehigh Valley Mall management has notified LANTA that bus service may not be permitted on the mall grounds as of June.

The 109th PA Farm Show is in full swing and continues through Saturday in Harrisburg. Find out how Lehigh Valley competitors placed in the Family Living and Commodities competitions.

Phoebe Harris, 59, first was elected to Allentown School Board in 2017. She has advocated for students and sometimes found herself at the center of controversy.

Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong, with less than a year left in his term, emphasized the need for nonpartisan cooperation, funding and "not being a lame duck" toward the end of his service during a visit to Emmaus Borough Council. He also brought a funding announcement.

Comcast has confirmed that the first 1,000 homes and businesses of a 7,000 home and business expansion has been completed, providing further competition for internet and cable television services in the Lehigh Valley.

The Lehigh Valley Zoo’s barnyard birds, waterfowl and penguins are off exhibit. A recent suspected bird flu outbreak in wild geese is to blame.

The weeklong 109th PA Farm Show is well underway. More than a half-dozen Lehigh County 4-H’ers already have competed in various categories, from swine and sheep to breeding and market beef.

The money, administered by the National Park Service, along with $1,850,000 already committed by Lehigh County, will be used to replace the Cast House roof. Other work will focus on water infiltration of the furnace and rehabilitation of related buildings.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is collecting public input about listing the monarch butterfly under the Endangered Species Act. Officials estimate the eastern migratory population has declined by approximately 80%.