Monday night, the public got a better look at the future school to be built on the old Allentown State Hospital property along Hanover Avenue. These residents liked what they saw. "This is long overdue," one woman said at the meeting. The psychiatric hospital closed in 2010 and the building was demolished in 2020. The K-8 Allentown Academy will serve roughly 1,200 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. The school is expected to open in time for the 2027-28 school year.
Authorities are investigating a crash involving a school bus in Northampton County on Monday. Police said a Colonial Intermediate Unit 20 bus with students onboard collided with two other vehicles in Palmer Township at around 4 p.m. At least two people were injured in the crash, but no one on the bus was harmed.
Allegiant Air pilots will be picketing today at nearly two dozen airports, including Lehigh Valley International Airport. An ABE spokesman said the airport doesn't anticipate any disruptions and Allegiant says the pickets are not a work stoppage. A contract dispute between Allegiant and its pilots has been ongoing for more than a year. Last November, pilots represented by Teamsters Local 2118 voted to authorize a strike if an agreement can't be reached.
Pennsylvania American Water customers may be seeing a rate increase. The company has reportedly filed a rate increase request with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. If approved, the typical residential customer would see a $14 increase to their water bill each month, and about a $10 increase each month to the wastewater bill. Pennsylvania American Water says the higher rates would support over one-billion-dollars in investments to the water and wastewater service system through 2027.
It's not Thanksgiving yet, but Musikfest is already looking ahead to next summer's festival. Two headliners were announced Monday. One is a bit of a novelty act. Weird Al Yankovic will bring his song parodies to the Wind Creek Steel Stage on the night of Tuesday, August 4. The second Musikfest headliner is a bit more conventional. Country star Bailey Zimmerman will be in Bethlehem the night of Thursday, August 6. Tickets to each show go on sale to the general public on Friday.
Some New Jersey lawmakers want the state's retailers to tell customers how much they're paying for tariffs, though an industry group that opposes tariffs say the idea, while they think it's a good one, is unworkable. Bills that would require New Jersey retailers to display the portion of a product's price that's attributed to tariffs. The bill's main sponsor in the Assembly says consumers have a right to know how much they're paying for tariffs. But the New Jersey Business and Industry Association warns complicated international supply chains could make determining tariff costs difficult and impractical.
Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson suffered a Lisfranc injury during Sunday night's 16-9 victory over the Detroit Lions. It is not expected to be a season-ending injury, but Johnson could be headed to injured reserve. Head coach Nick Sirianni isn't saying much. "We'll see with Lane. I know that he'll do everything he can do to get back as quick as he possibly can," Sirianni says. A Lisfranc injury is a sprain, fracture, or dislocation of the midfoot bones and ligaments.