Berks Weekly

The 2026 Berks County Field of Heroes concluded July 6 after welcoming visitors to Wyomissing Stone House Pond for a weeklong tribute honoring military members, first responders, healthcare workers, educators, community leaders, and other local heroes. Presented by the West Reading-Wyomissing Rotary Club, the display featured more than 250 dedicated U.S. flags lining the walking trails surrounding the pond from June 29 through July 6.

The City of Reading has extended the application deadline for its Downtown Housing Development Grant Program, giving eligible property owners an additional month to apply for funding aimed at creating new residential housing in the city’s downtown. Applications for the City of Reading Downtown Housing Development Grant Program (COR-DHD) are now due by Friday, Aug. 7, 2026.

A Reading man is facing felony drug charges after investigators allegedly seized approximately four pounds of methamphetamine, drug trafficking materials and more than $10,000 in cash during an investigation by the Berks County District Attorney’s Drug Task Force.

CASA of Berks County has announced the appointment of Laura Biancone, MSW as its new Executive Director. Biancone brings a wealth of nonprofit leadership experience, community engagement, and a deep commitment to serving vulnerable populations. Most recently, she served as Executive Director of the LGBT Center of Greater Reading, where she guided the organization through a period of significant growth and strengthened partnerships throughout Berks County.

This story was produced by the Berks County bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom. Sign up for Good Day, Berks, a daily dose of essential local stories at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/gooddayberks. READING — Albright College has been warned that continued poor budgeting and financial instability could risk the eventual loss of its accreditation.

Motorists in Berks County should expect several roadway work zones this week as PennDOT and a local utility complete maintenance and infrastructure projects. The work will include crack sealing, shoulder widening, and waterline installation, with daytime lane restrictions and flagging planned at several locations throughout the county. Hereford Township: Utility work will take place on PA 29 between PA 100 and the Montgomery County line from Tuesday, July 7, through Friday, July 31.

A 16-year-old has been charged as an adult with criminal homicide following a fatal shooting late Saturday night in Reading that claimed the life of another 16-year-old. According to the Reading Police Department, officers were dispatched to the 1000 block of Windsor Street at approximately 11:32 p.m. on July 4 for a report of shots fired. Initial information indicated that a juvenile had been struck by gunfire.

City officials and regional tourism leaders officially opened the Pennsylvania World Cup Fan Zone in downtown Reading on Friday morning with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Santander Arena, kicking off a weekend of free events centered around the FIFA World Cup 2026.

The Berks County Fair will celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with a free, family-friendly event led by its Junior Fair Board on Friday, July 10. The “Celebrating America’s 250th” event will take place from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the fairgrounds in Leesport. Organizers say the patriotic celebration was conceived and organized by members of the Junior Fair Board to honor the nation’s semiquincentennial while offering activities for visitors of all ages.

Reading Theater Project will present a staged reading of “Just What the Doctor Ordered,” a farce by local playwright Judd Lear Silverman, on July 18 at 1 p.m. at the Wyomissing Library, 9 Reading Blvd. A post-performance Q&A with the playwright will follow. In this Moliere-meets-Orton farce, a Jewish mother, on her deathbed, insists her son should be married to inherit the family fortune, but with gay marriage legal, he should marry a gay doctor. Counter-plots ensue and complications follow.