Parkland News

Shankweiler’s Drive-In Theatre in North Whitehall now has two party spaces available to rent for groups attending the theater.

Upper Macungie Board of Supervisors on Wednesday approved final plans for Americold Logistics’ cold storage warehouse expansion and Twin Ponds, a mixed-use housing development.

As of 4:05 p.m. July 1, Dorney Park’s parent company Cedar Fair Entertainment officially merged with Six Flags. The combined company will retain Six Flags as its corporate name and trade under Cedar Fair’s ticker, FUN.

Al Granger bought an abandoned Lehigh Valley farm in the 1980s and turned it into a luxurious inn and spa. He was known for his vision and innovation — and for being ultra-tough on those he employed.

The first annual KidsPeace Dodgeball Tournament was held Thursday. It raised money for the Orefield-based nonprofit, which provides behavioral and mental health services to children.

South Whitehall Township will hold its first Summer Movie Series event from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday in the township municipal building’s grass circle, 4444 Walbert Ave. It will also hold an information and feedback session about its Transportation PLAN.

Farmers Kenneth and Heather Skorinko are planning to open a craft distillery with a tasting room. They would build a 2,400 square foot pole barn at 1990 Neffs Laurys Road in North Whitehall to house it.

South Whitehall Planner Gregg Adams is retiring on June 30 after 25 years with the township. Adams helped steer the township through two comprehensive plans and the Ridge Farms controversy.

North Whitehall Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a revised plan of the Rising Sun subdivision, which would have 110 single-family homes on about 100 acres at 1321 Rising Sun Road.

South Whitehall Board of Commissioners unanimously approved an agreement between the township and Dorney Park to try to address traffic concerns on Hamilton Boulevard near the park.

At the latest hearing for the proposed facility, both witnesses spoke about the need for recovery houses. "There's as much effort being made to get the drugs out there as to keep them also on the down-low, very silenced, so no one really can tell. And they're attacking our young population.” Julissa Pena, a witness for the applicant said.

The board may have violated transparency laws because key discussions about filling a vacancy did not happen in public, according to Melissa Melewsky, in-house counsel for the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association.

The Parkland School Board voted 7-1 to appoint a longtime former board member to fill the vacant seat.

The new lawmakers from the Lehigh Valley joined more than 50 other new faces who were ceremonially sworn in to the General Assembly in Harrisburg.

Jarrett Coleman initially planned to stay on as a Parkland School Board member while simultaneously serving in the state Senate. He changed course last month. Good government advocates say such an arrangement creates the potential for conflicts of interest.

Andre Williams owns AW Selvedge and DKShin, denim companies. He is based in the Lehigh Valley. He’s using the skills he honed on the field to dress people. And he said making a sale gives him the feeling of a win.

Three South Whitehall Township Zoning Hearing Board members cannot attend meetings in the coming months, so the board appointed a hearing officer. It will allow the board to legally meet a required quorum.

South Whitehall Twp. commissioners are seeking applicants for vacant alternate seats on the Zoning Hearing Board.

Longtime former board member Robert Bold served as board president five times and vice president three times. He would fill the vacancy created by state Sen. Jarrett Coleman's resignation.

The sprawling plan in South Whitehall touches on infrastructure and future development in a township that has seen contentious debate over its future in recent years

This development comes six years after voters in South Whitehall voted to allow the township to borrow $600,000 to repair the dam.

South Whitehall Township's Board of Commissioners approved the 2023 budget after making minor changes to the draft budget at their meeting Wednesday.