Police Identify O'Brien's Killer

The Express-Times reports (read the article here) that police have charged Mark Williams, also of Nazareth, of criminal homicide. It was noted that beating and strangulation were the cause of death.

Williams was arriagned before District Magistrate Strohe today and sent to Northampton County Prison without bail.

Nazareth Day Road Rally

Recevied this note from the Vigilance and wanted to forward it along:

The 12 annual Vigilance Hose Company ROAD RALLEY and FIREWORKS will be held Sat. July 18th at the Nazareth Borough Park. The Road Ralley starts at 4:00 and the Fireworks will go off promptly at 10pm. The rain date will be Sun. July 19th. We will only use the rain date if Nazareth Day is postponed.

All proceeds go towards the Vigilance Hose Co. equipment fund. We are accepting donations for the fireworks. All donations should be sent too: Vigilance Hose Fireworks 2009, PO Box 191, Nazareth, PA 18064.

[Major Update: the Fireworks have been cancelled. More information to follow once I have it]

BB or Plastic Pellet - Type of Gun Makes a Difference

The Public Comment portion of the Council meeting apparently got heated last night. I received a few emails and the Express-Times reports on the reason why (read the article here).

An 11 year old boy allegedly shot out a window on South Pine Street (the alley between Whitfield and New). Two tenants saw the boy shoot out the window, called their landlord, who in turn called police.

Despite the witnesses, Chief Sinclair stated it was an 'accident'. He further noted it was not, "a BB gun; it was a toy that shoots plastic pellets."

One reader by email informed me that BB guns are illegal in the borough, which might explain why the clarification was provided. If it was a BB gun and an accident, the shooter still should have been cited for the illegal gun.

The landlord claims he is responsible to replace the window at his own expense due to the 'accidental nature' of its being damaged.

Lifeguards Response Appreciated

I got a note from a reader who was at the Borough Park Pool yesterday. The individual was quite impressed with the response our lifeguards made when an individual outside the pool fell coming over one of the bridges separating the parking lot from the park area.

I witnessed their expertise and professionalism today dealing with an older gentleman who fell walking over one of the bridges near the pool. Their response was quick and comforting and it made everyone feel good to have such a well-trained team in place to deal with a minor injury.

To those involved on a day to day basis to help make our Park safe and enjoyable - this is a great time to say good job and thank you from everyone!

Kittens Need a Home Update

Here is a photo of the previously mentioned (read the post here) spice kittens looking for a good home.

If you are interested send a note to editor@newsovercoffee.com and I'll forward it to the individual who is placing them.

Baseball Update

Got this note from Andy who asked me to forward it along:

can you post on your site the time change of the nazareth baseball game. it was moved from 5:30 to 7:30. it is now at Lehigh Twp. It's game 2 of best of 3 playoffs first round.

Kittens Need a Home

Received a note from a reader who is fostering six kittens and they are up for adoption very soon.

The spice kittens are named Paprika,Pepper,Cayenne, Ginger, Coco Bean and Nutmeg.

"All of the kittens are great with kids, our dogs and cats and they never miss the litter box. We have loved on all six of them for weeks and want to help them find their forever homes."

If you are interested or would like to get in touch with the owner, contact me at editor@newsovercoffee.com

Floral Arranger for Presidents in Nazareth

Cathy Miller, a floral arranger at the White House during the terms of Carter through W. Bush, will be in Nazareth at the Moravian Hall Square on Saturday to speak about her experiences and work according to an article in the Express-Times (read it here).

Wall Street Journal on Martin Guitar

Tomorrow's (Monday) Wall Street Journal will include an article on the Martin Guitar Company's decision to produce a new guitar in the sub $1000 price bracket in response to the current ecomony (read the article here).

The article notes that the new 1 Series, introduced in April has sold out its 8000 production run for this year. The goal was to keep employees from being laid off by introducing a lower cost, yet quality guitar. The article notes that sales were down 20% and retiring workers were not being replaced in most cases.

Seems to be a good strategy the company has employed, let's hope there are no lay-offs.

New Route 33 Interchange - Good or Bad?

The Morning Call has a story on the proposed interchange in Palmer Township for Route 33 and discusses the pros and cons of it (read the article here).

Palmer Twp recognizes they have a tremendous potential for financial gain from the project. Upper Nazareth, at least the supervisor quoted, is more concerned with the potential cost.

There is undoubtedly commercial growth around highway ramps. Look at the recent development along route 33 from 248 south for proof. The question really is which school district will benefit from that development, and at this point it seems the Chrin plan is all about development in Palmer, with minor development in Tatamy, so Easton will be the primary beneficiary.

12 hour vs 8 hour shift

Wasn't aware of this issue, but apprently the police department's officers and borough management have been arguing over shift hours according to the Express-Times (read the article here).

Officers wanted 12 hour shifts, presumably to receive overtime during a work-week, and the borough only wanted to provide 8 hour shifts. The case went to the PA Labor Relations Board and the officers won.

Kazoo Concert

The Express-Times reports on the Kazoo concert held in Nazareth on the 4th (read it here).

Kazoo Update

The Express-Times reports that the Kazoo Parade will be stationary this year (read the article here).

It also notes, "The concert will be 10 a.m. Saturday at Memorial Park outside Nazareth Borough Council chambers at Church and Center streets."

And that, "At 10:15 a.m. the Nazareth Area Community Band will perform and a July 4 program will kick off at 10:30 a.m."

Weekly Blogosphere Round-up

Expected and saw lighter posting this week especially toward the holiday weekend - enjoy all!

Lehigh Valley Ramblings had some good posts this week and a couple of call outs so I had to feature Bernie's site first. On Tuesday, at the stroke of midnight, Bernie conducted a study of area sites and blogs and their Alexa Ranking. I don't pay too close attention to this for NOC, because how high could it conceivably rank given a focus on a population with less than 25,000? Well, the site is in the 2.8 million range, meaning there are that many more popular than NOC around the world. Bernie did note readership on NOC was up 60% over the past three months, which was a pleasant surprise, though I'm expecting a summer slow down (very common).

Ramblings were outside the top 1 million but didn't hit 2 million, way to go Bernie!

Informationally, Bernie has a great run-down, including resumes of the three candidates to fill the County Council vacancies.

Thanks for the plug on the Town Hall meeting NOC reported Charlie Dent having on Monday!

And finally, Bernie has been practicing extensively for the kazoo parade (this has to be a post on Weird Nazareth next week!)

Andy predicted and saw his prediction come true - no PA budget on July 1. Not sure how he sits through full coverage on PCN, but he does it!

From Cozy House to Home has a great piece on a trip to an antique show complete with photos of items to purchase, kids enjoying the event, and purchases on display in the home - nice job Michelle and loved the pictures of the kids! She has also announced the winner of the throw rug.

Weird Nazareth continues to intrigue with a great post on the history of Christian Springs. I knew the community was originally a Moravain settlement, and got the spring part, but the rest was all news to me and I think some further exploration and potentially historical recognition would be great for the area. Nice job! If you know of local history, or more importantly local rumors related to history, contact Weird Nazareth or send me a note and I'll forward it along.

Those taking early holiday leave included Breakfast in the Valley, Joe Owens Blog, Lower Nazareth Citizens Forum, and Tatamy Happenings.

If you have a Nazareth area or Nazareth based blog that you would like to have included on the sidebar and in the round-up - please let me know: editor@newsovercoffee.com

Nazareth Car Wash

I had often wondered why the renovation of the Nazareth Car Wash on the south end of town had taken so long to complete. The Morning Call has an article today (read it here) noting that a Morristown, NJ man was sentenced to 1 to 7 years for bilking the Car Wash out of $92,500. The money was intented to purchase equipment to renovate the facility and was never purchased.

Unfortunately, it appears to have been a criminal case and it doesn't appear the Car Wash will recuperate the funds, at least not as of this trial.

Marino's License Reinstated

State licensing officials have reinstated Nazareth School Board Member John Marino's license following his hearing in Harrisburg according to the Express-Times (read the article here).

The licensing hearing is separate from the criminal hearing.

Kazoo Parade

The annual Kazoo Parade is this weekend and the Express-Times had these details available:

Nazareth: A kazoo concert begins 10 a.m. Saturday with players gathering 9:45 a.m. at Memorial Square, West Center Street. Kazoos will be supplied by Lafayette Ambassador Bank. Nazareth Area Community Band, under the direction of Ralph Brodt III, will perform 10:15 a.m. as a prelude to Independence Day events beginning 10:30 a.m. Participants and attendees are asked to wear red, white and blue and bring flags to wave.

County Council Vacancy

The Northampton County Council has a vacancy and three have applied to fill it, including Lower Nazareth's Gerry Seyfried according to an article in the Morning Call (read it here).

Seyfried is a former Councilman and former County Executive. Also applying are Ron Heckman, another former Councilman and former NorCo Official, currently serving Lehigh County, and Bob Birk.

Casino $$$ Commission Controversy Continues

The Morning Call reports that the commission to determine which municipalities receive what portion of gambling dollars continues to be contested on the county level (read the article here).

Ron Angle has taken the position that municipalities outside Bethelehem should be involved including Nazareth and the Slate Belt.

Seems this has gotten far to over-complicated. Couldn't we simply assign two zones to municipalities in Northampton County - high impact and all others, then distribute based on population plus an additional factor for high impact?

Congressman Dent to Hold Town Meeting in Nazareth

U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent will be in Nazareth for a Town Meeting on Monday according to a calendar notice in the Morning Call (read it here)

REP. CHARLIE DENT will hold a town hall discussion 10-11 a.m. Monday at NazarethBorough Council chambers, 159 W. Center St.

Upcoming Fundraisers

The Morning Call Sports Calendar had a few events noted for the Nazareth area:

• NAZARETH FOOTBALL BOOSTER CLUB GOLF OUTING, JULY 6 -- Woodstone C.C. … 1 p.m. shotgun start … $85/golfer, $340/foursome … info and to register call Lori Mori 610-703-5199 or Keith Koch 610-759-0469
• NAZARETH BLUE EAGLE 5K RUN/WALK, AUG. 8 -- Event begins and ende at Lower Nazareth Elementary School, Newberg Road, Lower Nazareth Twp. … event benefits track and cross country programs at Nazareth H.S. … pre-registration $20 until July 25 … pre-registration guarantees T-shirt, $25/July 26 through race day (shirts if available) … Forms available www.nazarethtrackandcrosscountry.com, click on 5K link. … Awards to overall male/female, plus, 11U, 12-15, 16-19, 20-24 through 65 and over in five-year increments … info Scott Kately, race director, e-mail skately@verizon.net.