Jason Addy
Allentown Area reporterI cover Allentown and have worked for news outlets in Pennsylvania, Chicago and Minneapolis since graduating from Penn State. It’s great to be much closer to home — I was born and raised in Lehighton — and I’m excited to help share Allentown’s stories. If you've got an idea, I want to hear it. You can reach me any time at jasona@lehighvalleynews.com.
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Blackstone Structures’ Gary Newman said he considered refurbishing or moving the buildings in lieu of knocking them down, but those projects were too expensive and infeasible. -
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.
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Mayor Matt Tuerk said several million dollars in additional revenue would let officials make long overdue investments in the city's staff and systems.
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Lehigh County Executive Phil Armstrong proposed his $520 million spending plan in August, and commissioners appear ready to approve it without major changes.
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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.
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Though Ideal Tower will have three fewer floors than the PPL Tower, it's set to stand 326 feet high — four feet taller than the iconic Allentown structure.
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City Center is proposing a new "mixed-use overlay district" that would let it put homes, offices and more on the sprawling East Side property in Allentown.
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The Allentown Planning Commission tabled the proposal last month over concerns the large building could “cause a disconnect” with its neighborhood.
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An attempted-homicide charge against Ethan Bastien was upgraded to criminal homicide when Sian Cartagena died days after police allege he shot her.
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Sian Cartagena’s death is the 16th homicide in Allentown this year and the second in less than two weeks, according to authorities.
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The 28-year-old, who was not immediately identified, jumped from the Tilghman Street Bridge around 12:40 p.m. Thursday, according to the Lehigh County Coroner's Office.
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Isiah Yeager, 25, is due to stand trial Oct. 20 — 28 months after he was charged with homicide in connection with a fatal stabbing at Synergy Hookah Lounge.
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Officials are earmarking about a quarter of the money to pay for other capital projects the city has “not been able to work on for many, many years,” Allentown Finance Director Bina Patel said Wednesday.
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Allowing some residents to stay at the encampment for an extra month is “the safest and most humane course of action,” Mayor Matt Tuerk said. But no one else will be allowed to set up camp there before its closure.
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The first phase of the project is to cost about $2.3 million and is “shovel ready,” according to Mandy Tolino, who leads Allentown’s parks and recreation department.
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Edward Tomcics was fatally struck on the night of Dec. 25 outside his home on Water Street. More than seven months later, authorities charged the man who hit him.
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Officials on Thursday said Allentown YMCA will open its shelter at least six weeks early this year to serve some residents of a homeless encampment who are being evicted.
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$50,000 will cover about a month of operations at the Allentown YMCA's warming shelter, which typically opens in mid-November. But it could struggle to open its doors before a homeless encampment's Aug. 25 eviction deadline.
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Officials approved a $57 million project to convert miles of former railroad tracks into roads and trails between Hamilton Street in Allentown and Race Street in Whitehall Township.
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Resurrected Community Life Church is renovating its building on West Turner Street to serve more than 1,000 young students in Allentown.
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The new school is expected to serve about 1,200 Allentown students in kindergarten through eighth grade. City Center is optimistic it will be ready for the start of the 2027-28 school year.
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Residents who spoke to LehighValleyNews.com said they don’t know where they will go; the camp near Tilghman Street was an oasis for many who previously lived alone or in small groups.
