Lehigh County News

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.

Newhard Farms Corn Shed opened Tuesday for sweet corn sales. While it opened a few days later than in recent years, there's expected to be a good supply this season.

The bill would limit the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of firefighting foam containing PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, beginning in 2026.

Xylazine, an animal-grade tranquilizer that's not approved for human use, has taken Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply by storm. Known on the streets as "tranq," it accounted for almost 1 in 4 overdose deaths in Pennsylvania by 2023. Last year in Lehigh County, it was a contributing cause of death in 20 of the 112 deadly overdoses, or 17.9 percent of cases.

A Wawa proposed for MacArthur Road and Mickley Road received conditional approval from the Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners on Monday night.

Forty-five lawmakers have co-sponsored a bill that would protect workers who make prefabricated structures used in government contracts in better-paying communities.

The director that oversaw a revival of the community center and a variety of new events announced she will be stepping down after over two years in the position.

Parkland School District administrator Frank Anonia is the subject of an internal investigation. He was recently deposed in a lawsuit that alleges the district knew another teacher, Christian Willman, was sexually assaulting students but did nothing to stop it.

Coopersburg's farmers' market disappeared with the COVID-19 pandemic. On Sunday, the market returned to the borough for the first time in years.

June is Pride Month, an annual celebration of the LGBTQ community. There are many Pride events in and around the Lehigh Valley this year.

Rami Abouloh is set to be sentenced Aug. 13; first-degree-murder convictions in Pennsylvania carry a mandatory life sentence.

Allentown businesses and high school students were honored at the Allentown Chamber of Commerce annual awards reception at the Renaissance Allentown Hotel on Thursday.

Scooped: An Ice Cream Trail has returned for its 7th year, taking Pennsylvanians on a tasty tour of the Keystone State.

Jurors convicted the former president on all 34 counts after deliberating for nearly 10 hours over two days. They found he falsified business records in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 presidential election.

The ribbon was cut Thursday on the new building at a South Whitehall Township senior living community. The complex added nearly 70 new apartments.

Emergency crews worked for more than an hour Tuesday morning near Fourth and Hamilton streets to recover the body of a 60-year-old Allentown man.