Easton News

Sol Katana is a Latin singer and solo artist based in the Poconos.

Easton City Councilman-elect Frank Pintabone has joined with Greater Shiloh Church and Heart of a Legend to provide free holiday toys for children in need within Easton's South Side and West Ward this Saturday.

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

Easton's College Hill will host its first Luminaria Night Dec. 9, aiming to inspire a sense of community and support New Bethany's mission to provide for those in need.

In celebration of the first night of Hanukkah, members of the Lehigh Valley's Jewish community came together in Easton's Centre Square to light the city's menorah and celebrate community in trying times.

Amtrak officials previously said passenger rail between Allentown and New York City could be restored as soon as 2024. However, a $300,000 study exploring the proposed connection is more than a month overdue.

'Tis the season of giving, and on Wednesday, Crayola doled out $100,000 in grants to a slew of United Way-connected nonprofits situated in the Lehigh Valley.

Bar Torino and Bottle Shop is set to open up in Easton's luxury Seville apartments in 2024, offering gourmet food and hand-selected libations to satisfy any palate.

Jeff Dailey was a 2004 graduate of Notre Dame High School and held its all-time scoring record for almost 20 years. He died in a fire in 2007 while attending East Stroudsburg University. On Friday night, hundreds turned out to pay homage to his legacy and family.

Jeff Dailey was a 2004 graduate of Notre Dame High School and held the all-time scoring record for almost 20 years. He died in a fire in 2007 while attending East Stroudsburg University. On Friday night, hundreds turned out to pay homage to his legacy and family.

Thirteen of the Lehigh Valley's seats in the General Assembly look like they'll have a contested November election. State Senate races in Lehigh and Northampton counties will have contested primaries, as well.

Gary Lewis & The Playboys and The Lovin' Spoonful will perform as part of The My Generation Tour at 7:30 p.m. March 13 at Easton's State Theatre. Joining them will be Terry Sylvester of The Hollies, one of those British groups with which they competed, and which had five Top 10 hits of their own in the 1960s.

"The entire regiment deserves some sort of reconsideration, whether it’s by BusPatrol or by legislative change,” PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll said during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing.

A Multi-Agency Resource Center will be open from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Gallery at the State Theatre for victims of the Hampton Hotel fire in Easton.

Broadway's "Rock of Ages" Band features the musician case of the Broadway show playing what it calls playing "the greatest rock hits from the glam metal bands of the '80s."

The United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, in coordination with Greater Easton Development Partnership, has established the fund to help victims of Friday's devastating fire at the Hotel Hampton building, 462 Northampton St. Also, a Red Cross emergency shelter operation has been relocated.

One firefighter suffered serious injuries when he fell off a ladder escaping the fire. Several others received minor injuries. Authorities said the coroner was on scene Saturday "out of an abundance of caution" because they did not have an accurate count of people living in the Hotel Hampton building.

In December alone, there were 676 eviction filings and defaults in Lehigh County — the highest monthly total since August 2023.

In counties such as Lehigh, eviction filings have reached their highest point in years, even as rental vacancy rates have fluctuated. That apparent contradiction — rising vacancy estimates alongside persistent eviction volume — is part of a broader housing dynamic playing out across the region.

Xiaomin Fei, 34, on Thursday entered the plea in the June 3 shooting deaths of Robert and Gretchen Ackerman, Northampton County District Attorney Stephen G. Baratta announced.

Officials signed off on plans that call for 73 condominiums — 15 one-bedroom units, 36 two-bedroom units and 22 three-bedroom units — and about 2,500 square feet of commercial space.

Jack Bennett grew up in the family hardware business and went on to lead it for nearly 25 years. He was one of Easton's most prominent business leaders in the 1970s and '80s. He died Jan. 29 at age 98. Friends say he left an impression on the Downtown business community that still can be felt today.