Parkland News

The district, now represented by Sen. Jarrett Coleman, a first-term Republican, covers much of Lehigh County's rural and suburban communities and the northern part of Bucks County.

Mark Pinsley has launched his third bid for state Senate and will abandon his efforts to become the Lehigh Valley's next congressman.

Lehigh County Democrats confirmed that Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley is circulating petitions for both Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District and Pennsylvania's 16th state Senate District.

A webinar Monday brought together regional planners, engineers and industry leaders to explain how data centers operate and what their growth could mean for local communities.

Democrat Geoffrey Whitcomb intends to campaign for the Lehigh County-based district that Republican Gary Day currently represents. The seat heavily favors Republicans.

The Lehigh County Coroner's Office said the 27-year-old died Saturday night at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest — hours after being shot during a standoff with Pennsylvania State Police in a North Whitehall Township driveway.

Lehigh County Coroner Dan Buglio announced that a 93-year-old Lower Macungie Township woman died outside her home of hypothermia. She is Lehigh County's first weather-related fatality of 2026.

Residents of South Whitehall Township voiced their opposition to a proposed 5-million-square-foot data center near Parkland High School.

A Lehigh County judge has denied an appeal that sought to clear the way for Nexus 78, a 501,000-square-foot warehouse proposed for North Whitehall Township. The ruling is unlikely to be the last word in the fight over the warehouse's fate.

In its review, the LVPC said the data center proposal lacks specificity needed to fully review the project in Upper Macungie Township.

Parkland School Board Vice President Marisa Ziegler announced her reelection campaign Tuesday.

Sunny Ghai will be the new chair starting in February. He campaigned for the board as a smart growth candidate.

The appeal involves potential open meetings violations.

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.