Sunday, March 31, 2013
Upper Saucon Township supervisors awarded a contract to build the second phase of the township's section of the Saucon Rail Trail.
Upper Saucon Township supervisors awarded a $464,000 contract to a South Whitehall Township company March 11 to complete a rail-to-trail walking and biking path. Phase 2 of the Upper Saucon Township section of the Saucon Rail Trail will extend two miles from Township Park to E. Landis Street—the municipal boundary with the borough of Coopersburg—along an inactive SEPTA rail line. Semmel Excavating Inc., which was awarded the contract, offered the township three different options for work completion. The two other options only brought the trail as far as Passer Road for $225,000 and Southern Lehigh Living Memorial Park for $436,000. In both of those cases, the township would have lost Lehigh County grant money, which is earmarked to pay for…
Sunday, January 27, 2013
James Fortunato was no longer employed by Revolutions at Saucon Valley as of Friday, the owner of the new Saucon Valley entertainment venue said. Fortunato is accused of embezzling more than $160,000 from a former employer.
Less than 24 hours after he welcomed VIP guests and dignitaries to the grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for Revolutions at Saucon Valley, the new entertainment venue's general manager was no longer working there, according to published media sources that quoted parent company Frank Entertainment. But a lot can happen in less than 24 hours. It was unclear whether James Fortunato was fired from his new job or left voluntarily, but what is known is that the day after the ribbon-cutting in Lower Saucon Township, allegations surfaced that he embezzled more than $160,000 from Allentown's Cosmopolitan restaurant, where he was formerly the general manager. Frank Entertainment declined further comment about Fortunato, but said it had just …
40.586309
-75.386663
Revolutions at Saucon Valley
3691 Route 378, Bethlehem, PA
/articles/revolutions-manager-loses-job-after-theft-charges-levied
2325809
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Monday, November 26, 2012
The Pennsylvania State Police at Bethlehem announced last week that they will conduct a sobriety checkpoint in Lehigh or Northampton County the weekend of Nov. 30-Dec. 1.
The holiday season is around the corner, and it's a reality that drinking and driving is often more prevalent at that time. So it's perhaps not a coincidence that Pennsylvania State Police at Bethlehem are planning to conduct a sobriety checkpoint somewhere in Lehigh or Northampton County the weekend of Nov. 30-Dec. 1. Police announced their planned DUI checkpoint in a press release Nov. 13. "The goal of a sobriety checkpoint is to reduce the number of alcohol and drug related fatal and serious crashes, and to reduce the number of DUI drivers on Pennsylvania's highways," police said. State troopers will systematically stop vehicles at the selected checkpoint location "to briefly observe drivers for articulable facts and/or behaviors …
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Lehigh County election officials say there are too many additional ballots left to count to call the hotly contested race for the 131st district
Election night left state Rep. Justin Simmons looking like a winner but county officials today say the outcome of the 131st House race is not yet certain. Hundreds of ballots are still to be counted. It's expected to take weeks to finalize the outcome. "I'd say there are between 750 and 1,000 ballots left to count," said Lehigh County election official Tim Benyo. A preliminary tally without those ballots shows Simmons with a 562-vote lead. "It's definitely too tight to call this race [for the 131st district] yet," Benyo told Patch on Wednesday morning. Ballots still to be counted include: Simmons, 26, of Upper Saucon Township, won the 131st seat two years ago. He graduated from St. Joseph's University in 2008 with a bachelor's degree in …
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Two to four inches of snow are possible Wednesday into Thursday along with gusty winds, according to the National Weather Service.
- LOCAL CONNECTIONS
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Tuesday, November 6, 2012
According to the calendar, there are six more weeks of autumn, but somebody apparently forgot to tell Mother Nature. November has barely begun and the Lehigh Valley is already under a winter weather advisory. On Wednesday morning National Weather Service predicted snow will start after 1 p.m. with a daytime snow accumulation of two to four inches possible. It will be breezy with a north wind 14 to 22 mph with gusts as high as 37 mph. Parkland schools dismissed early Wednesday. According to the National Weather Service, snow and sleet will start before 10 p.m. Wednesday followed by rain and sleet with a low temperature around 32. New snow and sleet accumulation of 1 to 2 inches is possible. With the snow and wind predicted there may be …
The Lehigh Valley is a great predictor of how Pennsylvania will vote in presidential elections.
Muhlenberg College professor and pollster Christopher Borick won’t predict who is going to win Tuesday's presidential election. And he won’t say who will take Pennsylvania. But he will say this: “I’m very confident that who ever wins the Valley will win Pennsylvania.” The Lehigh Valley, with its cities, suburbs and rural areas, has become a bellwether for Pennsylvania politics. In 2008, both Northampton and Lehigh counties went for Barack Obama, just like the state. The Lehigh Valley went for Democrats John Kerry in 2004 and Al Gore in 2000, as did Pennsylvania as whole. “Pennsylvania hasn’t been a very good predictor of elections,” said Borick, director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion. But “the Lehigh Valley as a …
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
PennDOT announced Tuesday that a section of Broadway in Fountain Hill will be restricted for the next 10 days, as UGI performs gas line work.
- LOCAL CONNECTIONS
- Patch Staff
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Wednesday, September 5, 2012
A busy thoroughfare in Fountain Hill, Lehigh County will be partially restricted through Sept. 14, PennDOT's District 5 Office announced Tuesday. In a press release, PennDOT said there will be lane restrictions with flagging on Broadway between North Hoffert Street and Delaware Avenue, as UGI performs gas line work. The restrictions will be in place from 9am to 5pm PennDOT is advising motorists to expect delays and drive with caution when traveling through the work zone.
40.60213
-75.39378
N Hoffert St & Broadway, Fountain Hill, PA
/articles/penndot-broadway-in-fountain-hill-to-be-restricted
/locations/7708641
40.60052
-75.39873
Delaware Ave & Broadway, Fountain Hill, PA
/articles/penndot-broadway-in-fountain-hill-to-be-restricted
/locations/7708642
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
West Nile virus has been making headlines locally and nationally, so what does this mean for you? Should you be worried and how does this compare with other diseases?
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Lucy Bennett
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Wednesday, August 29, 2012
West Nile virus made national news recently with an announcement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “We're in the midst of one of the largest West Nile virus outbreaks ever seen in the United States,” said Dr. Lyle Petersen, who is the director of the Division of Vector-borne Infectious Diseases at the CDC. We are hearing more about West Nile virus and the cases of the virus being found on our doorstep. Each weekday, the Pennsylvania West Nile Control Program releases more positive test results of West Nile found in mosquitoes, bird and other animals. Within the recent weeks, they’ve been reporting human cases including two from Lehigh County. Other than the news reports and the desire to keep away from painful mosquito …
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Columnist headed to the only Driver's License Center in Lehigh County that issues IDs for voters.
I spent a recent afternoon in an experiment to see how long it might take to get a voter’s photo ID from the PennDOT Driver's License Center off Airport Road. I’ll tell you the results in a minute. It’s an important question because according to Pennsylvania’s Department of State, about 31,000 registered voters in the Lehigh Valley are without a current driver’s license or state issued non-driver ID that will enable them to vote in the Nov. 6 presidential election. Some of those folks have other official photo identification that will be accepted at the polls because they are a government employee, a member of the military, a university student or a nursing home patient or employee. All those IDs, so long as they haven’t expired -- plus …
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Better oversight, enforcement of public officials is needed, analysts say.
Pennsylvania legislators in 2010 reported more than $150,000 in gifts, paid travel and hospitality, including a trip to Texas. Legislators are required to submit statements of financial interest to the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission every year, detailing their direct and indirect sources of income, any gifts the legislator received in the past year and any transportation, lodging or hospitality the legislator did not pay for. The reports also include information on the legislator’s creditors, businesses and real estate interests. State Rep. Michael Carroll, D-Luzerne, received a chair worth $694 from Boy Scouts in the Lehigh Valley when he received their Citizen of the Year Award. A newspaper article published at the time said Carroll won …
Angie Drake
9:43 pm on Monday, April 1, 2013
I wonder how soon it can be completed? I am so glad they are extending the rail trail, yes....this is wonderful news for walkers, runner and bike riders!! more ›