Concerts Coming to Downtown Easton

Live at Riverside, Live in the Square, Tunes at Noon all return in May.

Easton will have another musical summer this year as the Easton Main Street Initiative's three concert series returns next month. Live at Riverside (held evenings at Riverside Park) and Tunes at Noon (held, as you might have guessed, at noon in Centre Square) will both resume on Friday, May 3. Live in the Square, also held in Centre Square, picks up again on the evening of Friday, May 31. Live at Riverside May 3: KeNoBe (R&B) June 7: The Large Flowerheads ('60s and '70s) July 5: Sarah Ayers Band (blues) Aug. 2: Joyous (cover band) Sept. 6: Zydeco a Go Go (New Orleans style band) Live in the Square May 31: Easton High School Jazz Bands (Jazz) June 28: Dave Leonhardt Trio (Jazz) July 26: Hot Bijouxx (Hot swing gypsy jazz) Aug. 30: Mike …

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Main Street Needs More Money, Freeman Says

State Rep. Bob Freeman pushing bill that would extend Main Street programs.

State Rep. Bob Freeman wants to give programs like the Easton's Main Street Initiative more time to do their work. Freeman's proposed legislation would extend the life of Pennsylvania's Main Street programs, which are designed to help communities improve their downtowns. The bill would extend funding for the administrative side of those programs for another five years, provided that the state Department of Community and Economic Development gives its permission. "Unfortunately, we have seen in numerous cases that the current five-year time frame to turn around a traditional downtown is too short," Freeman said in a news release. "A community just begins to see the progress brought on by Main Street initiatives only to see the plug pulled …

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Valentine's Day: Get Last-Minute Gifts in Easton

Easton main Street hosts a men's shopping night for Valentine's Day eve.

It's two days before Valentine's Day. Have you gotten a gift yet? If you're a man, and you're scrambling to find something, there might be a way to avoid getting something cheap and cliched, even if you're doing last minute shopping. Thirteen downtown Easton shops will hold a shopping night for men Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., similar to the one held before Christmas last year. You can shop with personalized assistance, enjoy beer, wine and snacks, and have your gifts wrapped (at some locations).  Participating stores include:

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Enter a "Land of Chocolate" Saturday in Easton

Chocolate Lovers' Soiree returns for its 7th year.

On Saturday, the Easton Main Street Initiaitve holds what it calls "our sweetest fundraiser of the year." We're talking about the Chocolate Lovers' Soiree, which returns for its seventh year Saturday from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Bank Street Annex. Menu items include chipotle chocolate cookies and chocolate-dipped applewood bacon from Black & Blue, canolis, buckeyes and macaroons from Green Harvest, and from Valenca, chocolate stout pulled pork empanadas with a chocolate mole sauce. You can view more items on the event's Facebook page. Tickets are $30, and can be found  online at www.EastonMainStreet.org or at the Main Street Initiative office at 35 S. Third Street. 

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Easton Stores Host Men's Shopping Night

Main Street Initiative wants to help men get their shopping done.

Are you a guy? Not sure what to get your wife/girlfriend for Christmas?Oh man. You probably should have asked her for suggestions by now. But don't worry. The Easton Main Street Iniative has your back. Starting tonight at 6 p.m., the group hosts a mens' shopping night at a variety of stores in downtown Easton. The stores will offer your some guidance, free gift-wrapping, beer, and snacks. A trolley will take shoppers around town, leaving from Valenca in Centre Square. The participating stores include:

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Valenca to Host "Sip And Taste"

Downtown eatery Valenca hosts fundraiser for Easton Main Street Initiative.

Valenca is hosting a "sip and taste" fundraiser Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., with net proceeds benefitting the Easton Main Street Initiative. Guests can sample the restaurant's latest menu items, "paired with seasonal libations," the initiative said in a news release.  There's also the chance to meet Abe Lopez, Valenca's new chef. Tickets are $25. RSVP at 610-923-5142.

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Easton Main Street Unveils Mural

Music-centric mural goes up along Easton's Fourth Street.

There's been a change of scenery on Easton's Fourth Street this week. On Monday, a group of artists put up a mural on the side of the Lafayette Bar depicting musicians and their instruments. A fitting choice, given the bar's frequent jazz nights. On Thursday, Easton's Main Street Initiative gathered a few dozen people along Fourth Street to dedicate the mural, which is part of the city's Gateway Improvement Project. "What better way to tell people when they drive into the city 'This is what Easton's all about,'" said the Main Street Iniative's Kim Kmetz. She said the building's owners greeted the project "with open arms." The mural was painted by four artists -- Kim Hogan, Donna Thatcher, Jenny Leggett and Janet Hodick -- from Easton's …

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Stores Seek Relief From Easton Construction

Work on Easton's South Third Street has businesses banding together with one message: We're still open.

Michelle Colbert doesn't like what she sees: An empty antiques store. But for the past two months, the only traffic the employee of Salvage Goods has seen are the construction crews working out front tearing up Third Street. On this Thursday, construction crews worked on the street along with cement mixers and dump trucks to install new curbing and sidewalks along one of Easton's main arteries. Orange fencing and cones are everywhere. And despite signs stating that some businesses are open, customers are nowhere to be found. "Our business is down 75 percent," Colbert said. "A lot of people are calling asking if we are closed." And that has Salvage Goods and others -- Mex Tex Trio, Naty's Notary, Monarch and Antonio's--  trying to stay the …

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Easton Main Street Gets National Accreditation

Main Street Initiative receives accreditation to continue for fourth year in a row.

Tunes At Noon Concerts Begin Friday

Easton Main Street series brings local musicians to Centre Square each week.

There's more live music heading to Easton's Centre Square this Friday. The Easton Main Street Initiative already has its yearly Live in the Square program scheduled to begin later this month. On Friday afternoon, the initiative will kick off Tunes at Noon, its first daytime concert series. The concerts will each run from noon until 1 p.m., featuring a different local musician each week throughout May and June. The line-up includes:

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