Easton News

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.

Affected customers are being asked to enroll in interest-free payment plans so the city can recover more than $35,000 in unpaid bills, its finance director said Wednesday.

Lawmakers voted 46-1 on Senate Bill 1014, bipartisan legislation that would require public schools to adopt "bell-to-bell" policies restricting student use of smartphones and other internet-connected devices throughout the entire school day.

Easton United for Democracy, an advocacy group less than a month old, held a protest in the city's Centre Square Sunday to push back against the Trump Administration.

Grassroots political organization Easton United for Democracy is organizing a march in the city's Centre Square on March 30, 2025, protesting the conduct of the current administration.

United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley is teaming up with local organizations to help raise funds for those displaced by the Hotel Lafayette fire.

Easton City Council approved a lease agreement with 28Fortune LLC that will allow it to open a Hologram Zoo on the first floor of City Hall this summer.

The restaurants are a fast-casual Mexican restaurant with a location in downtown Allentown; a new bar and lounge concept from the owners of Amigos; and a café, City Center said. The restaurants will open this summer.

At 19,580 square feet, the new field house would be built using the same footprint as the current annex building on site and would be used each day for gym classes and the like, NDHS Principal Jaclyn Friel told planners on Monday.

Easton Area School District has confirmed their preliminary budget shows a $7 million deficit for fiscal year 2026, and a growing reliance on the fund balance.

A conditional use hearing for a 170-unit apartment complex on Van Buren Road addressed a potential right-of-way issue during Monday's Palmer supervisors meeting, although the hearing has been continued until April.

Pennsylvania's Dog Laws clearly state dumping a dog is illegal. Yet every year, shelters bear witness to the unthinkable act, and much worse. When will it stop?

U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie visited Ward Transport & Logistics Corp. in Easton, where he got feedback about federal regulations on truck drivers and concerns about Pennsylvania's emission standards.

Two Rivers Brewing Co. has secured a variance which will allow the business to transform a run-down lot adjacent to its property into a new outdoor beer garden.

Easton Housing Authority obtained a set of variances that will allow for development of a 45-unit affordable senior housing project and dedicated parking in the West Ward.