Berks County news

The steps in a Berks County criminal case after an arrest: booking, preliminary arraignment and bail, the preliminary hearing, and formal arraignment in court.

What the Berks County commissioners did Aug. 27: a first step toward up to $30 million in youth-detention bonds, plus a 600 Penn tower agreement of sale.

Mount Penn wants to take control of the water system its authority has run since 1941. A court fight now affects 3,500 homes in four towns.

The Aug. 27 Berks County commissioners meeting: a step toward up to $30 million in bonds for the regional youth detention center, plus a vote to buy 600 Penn Street.

The Reading School District board votes Aug. 26 on a three-year contract for its food-service workers, with an hourly raise and new starting wages.

South Heidelberg supervisors vote Aug. 25 on a zoning change that defines data centers and would allow them in the township's I3 industrial district.

How to put money on a Berks County Jail inmate's account or tablet, mail letters and photos through TextBehind, and what you cannot send.

Visit an inmate at Berks County Jail: get on the approved list, schedule by phone at 610-208-4800, plus free video calls, ID rules, and dress code.

Find someone in the Berks County Jail System: call the jail at 610-208-4800, look them up free on VINE, or search Pennsylvania court dockets by name.

What the Berks County commissioners did Aug. 20: an arena-authority bond refinancing, an $82,675 courthouse-relocation study, and $304,500 in new ballot scanners.

Windsor Township adopted Ordinance 2026-01 on Aug. 11, setting where data centers can go in Berks County and what they must prove before they build.

The Aug. 20 Berks County commissioners agenda: a Convention Center Authority bond refinancing, a courthouse-relocation study, and new election scanners.

Amity Township holds a public hearing Aug. 19 on adopting a joint comprehensive plan with three neighbors, and weighs sewer-plant costs and a tapping-fee study.

Cumru Township’s commissioners meet Aug. 18 on a new trash and recycling contract, a rental-property program, and a new township manager.

Kutztown Borough Council meets Aug. 18 to weigh releasing $200,000 in fire-tax money for firehouse repairs, accept a councilmember’s resignation, and pay for its new borough building.

Reading is weighing a vacant-property registry with semiannual fees that climb to $5,000 for the buildings left empty and neglected the longest.

The Berks County Area Agency on Aging helps residents 60 and older stay independent. What it offers, what it costs, and how to get help for a parent.

Pothole, downed sign, or washed-out road in Berks County? How to tell if a road is PennDOT, township, or a county bridge, and exactly who to call.

What passed at the Aug. 13 Berks County commissioners meeting: $1.9 million in food contracts and more money for the delayed court-records system.

Bethel Township is set to begin writing data-center zoning rules and to advertise a public workshop for Sept. 8. What it means and how to follow it.