Bethel Township supervisors approved the purchase of a $77,442.92 Bobcat compact track loader and hired a new maintenance employee during their Dec. 30 year-end meeting.
James Mentzer
James Mentzer is a freelance writer and lifelong resident of Pennsylvania. He has spent his professional career writing about agriculture, economic development, manufacturing and the energy and real estate industries, and is the county reporter and a features writer for LebTown.
James is an outdoor enthusiast whose hobbies include hunting, Ultimate frisbee, disc golf, spikeball and pickleball, biking, traveling and attending live concerts for a number of bands, including moe., String Cheese Incident and Widespread Panic.
His published works include the books Pennsylvania Manufacturing: Alive and Well; Bucks County: A Snapshot in Time; United States Merchant Marine Academy: In Service to the Nation 1943-2018; A Century of Excellence: Spring Brook Country Club 1921-2021; Lancaster Development, Inc.: An American Story of Family and Infrastructure, and several other titles. He has also had business profiles published in Central Pennsylvania: Our Time Has Come, and an article in The Columbiad, a scholarly publication of Civil War Times Illustrated, concerning a little-known African American fort and battle along the James River in Virginia. Another book is currently in production for Morris Country Club in Morris, Illinois.
Posted inNews
N. Annville Twp. supervisors amend real estate tax rate, revise 2026 budget
North Annville Township supervisors lowered its first-ever and recently created real estate tax by almost half at a special meeting on Monday, Dec. 29.
Posted inNews
Lebanon County emergency tower project moves upward to improve comms system
Lebanon County’s $11.5 million emergency communications project is moving along with an expected completion date of this coming summer.
Posted inNews
County commissioners approve 2026 budget, sign prison healthcare contract
Lebanon County Commissioners approve 2026 budget, prison healthcare contract, and retirement board moves during special meeting on Dec. 24.
Posted inNews
Lebanon County’s student election worker program hailed as a top model
Pennsylvania state officials are using Lebanon County’s student poll worker program as a model for other counties, with 47 high school students — many bilingual — working the polls during the 2024 elections.
Posted inPeople & Places
Lebanon family keeps 80-year Christmas train tradition alive
Lebanon’s Donmoyer family is continuing an 80-year Christmas tradition of setting up an elaborate model train display that honors their late father, who worked for the Reading Railroad.
Posted inEducation
County Career & Tech Center receives clean audit for 2024-25 school year
The financial records of the Lebanon County Career & Technology Center are in good order, directors learned at their Dec. 16 board meeting.
Posted inNews
N. Londonderry Twp. officials approve 2026 general budget with no tax increase
North Londonderry Township supervisors approved a 2026 budget with no general fund tax increase for residents, though the fire hydrant tax rose slightly from 0.061 to 0.065 mills.
Posted inNews
Bethel Twp. officials formally adopt 2026 budget with no tax increase on residents
Bethel Township supervisors formally adopt their 2026 budget and bid farewell to a departing board member at their Dec. 11 meeting.
Posted inCommunity Shoutouts
Visit Lebanon Valley president & CEO’s career celebrated at retirement party
Jen Kuzo retires after eight years as president & CEO of Visit Lebanon Valley.
Posted inNews
Commissioner Litz to work remotely for three months following accident at work
Lebanon County Commissioner Jo Ellen Litz will work remotely tentatively through mid-March after an accident earlier this week.
Posted inPeople & Places
Second Liberty Bell revealed for 250th anniversary countywide celebration
A second Liberty Bell to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary was unveiled on Wednesday at a ceremony at the Lebanon Valley Expo Center.
Posted inEducation
Elementary students triumph over LVC all-stars in game show-style competition
Students from four regional elementary school participate in a fun educational program at Lebanon Valley College.
Posted inNews
N. Annville Twp. supervisors approve first-ever real estate tax for fire engine
North Annville supervisors create township’s first-ever real estate tax to help fund a new fire truck as part of the 2026 budget, which was also approved at the supervisors’ Dec. 8 meeting.
Posted inBusiness & Nonprofits
Economic development group looks to provide housing units in N. Lebanon Twp.
The Lebanon Valley Economic Development Corporation is exploring the rezoning of 18 acres in North Lebanon Township from industrial to residential for construction of a housing development.
