Lehigh County News

The South Whitehall Board of Commissioners is seeking applications to fill a vacant seat. The current commissioners will conduct public interviews with applicants at a special meeting on Dec. 28, then vote to appoint one of them.

The Upper Macungie Planning Commission reviewed a sketch plan for renovations and expansions to Trexler Travel Center on 5829 Tilghman St.

It might seem counterintuitive, but harvesting holiday trees year after year is better for the environment than using an artificial one, experts said, especially amid the proliferation of plastic piling up in landfills.

The new position will appear on the ballot in 2025. The Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas had one of the higher caseloads for counties of its size.

Officials on Wednesday reviewed several preliminary transportation policy strategies for the Valley's priority climate action plan. The plan’s focus is to reduce carbon emissions from transportation, a significant driver of greenhouse gas emissions across the region.

More than three dozen projects in the Valley were awarded grants, receiving about 7% of the total funding awarded. Statewide, $335 million in grants were announced Wednesday.

KidsPeace, which provides behavioral and mental health services to children, collected about 1,400 toys for its 12th annual Angel Tree holiday gift drive.

All but one township zoning amendment application were reviewed without issue by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission Comprehensive Planning Committee on Tuesday afternoon.

If ultimately completed, the combined health care system would operate 30 hospitals and more than 700 outpatient sites, with more than 62,000 employees, according to LVHN and Jefferson Health.

Driven by $8.1 billion in manufacturing, the Lehigh Valley's Gross Domestic Product grew to a record $50.2 billion in 2022. The region's economy now ranks above Vermont and Wyoming.

The body of a 34-year-old Emmaus man was found partially submerged in Allentown’s Jordan Creek, according to the Lehigh County Coroner's Office.

The Lehigh County chapter of the League of Women Voters will host a candidate's workshop in January. The Lehigh Valley's two county-level Republican committees will host their own candidate training program, as well.

Fountain Hill police and the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office charged two men with breaking into the Fountain Hill Pharmacy and opening fire on police, which led to a standoff and lockdown on Christmas Eve.

There are those Christmases that remain clear and crisp as a cold Nebraska night. For an 11-year-old boy, this one in the late 1960s is near the top of the Christmas list.

Bethlehem Fraternal Order of Police Star Lodge #20 raised $1,300 through the officer-led event for its community engagement initiatives.

U.S. Rep.-elect Ryan Mackenzie, R-Lehigh Valley, has a background in labor policy. He served as the Republican chair of Pennsylvania's House Committee on Labor and Industry.

It will get warmer and closer to normal as the week progresses, but for now, the National Weather Service recommends folks bundle up as an arctic air mass from Canada and the Great Lakes moves in.

Two people were wounded in the 300 block of Ridge Avenue. Allentown police were called there as they investigated a separate shooting blocks away in which a 1-year-old and his grandmother were shot to death in their home.

Liz Pacheco, 37, of Allentown, is charged with homicide, conspiracy to commit homicide, aggravated assault-attempting to cause serious bodily injury and conspiracy to commit aggravated assault — all first-degree felonies.

The fire broke out Thursday morning at a house in Catasauqua. The Lehigh County coroner said Kathryn Kubinsky died from natural causes.

U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, during her farewell address on the House floor Wednesday, said the $38 million spent in Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District was an obscene amount.

Two commercial entities had their cases heard in Tuesday's Whitehall Zoning meeting, including a shed-sales business and a new sign for Lehigh Valley Mall.