Below are excerpts from an inquiry that NewsLanc posed to the Lancaster Police Department and the response from Sgt. Todd Umstead: To: Sgt. Umstead, On the issue of pedestrians in crosswalks, PENNDOT has clarified for us that drivers must always yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. We continue to observe that many drivers don’t seem to […]

The Intelligencer Journal opens its Nov. 6 editorial by huffing “The politics of negativity and misrepresentation worked to kill the proposed home-rule charter.” In other words, the 60% of the voters who voted against it were a bunch of deluded fools. We beg to differ. NewsLanc objected to the Charter on two major accounts: 1) […]

Fifteen hundred people who use the Lancaster Public Library (Duke Street branch) each day have been deprived of the total upgrading and renovation of the building, for the first time since its construction in 1953. In an effort to reverse the startling reversal and impending action of the Library Board of Trustees, NewsLanc’s publisher and […]

QUESTION: Is TRRAAC opposing the relocation of the Norfolk & Southern rail yard? ANSWER: No. They want two alternative sites given serious consideration. QUESTION: Does it make sense to spend tens of millions of taxpayers dollars digging up a portion of a waste site that has been safely covered by dirt and growth for decades […]

7:00 p.m.: Unitarian Church, West Chestnut St., Lancaster City At the Unitarian Universalist Church on West Chestnut Street, they had seen 410 voters as of 7:00 p.m. This is roughly 55% of the total number of registered voters in the precinct, which is 745. Eldon E. Schiefer is the Judge of Elections and has been […]

1:30 p.m.: Evangelical United Methodist Church (New Holland Borough, First District) At the Evangelical United Methodist Church in New Holland, they had seen 482 voters as of about 1:45 p.m, according to Judge of Elections Don Weaver. There are 1,279 registered voters in the precinct. Both Weaver and the two present poll watchers – one […]

Somewhere from the commissioners down, word went out to poll workers to encourage voters to use paper ballots and only make use of the electronic voting machines when a specific request is made or they would be helpful to the physically disadvantaged. The paper ballots are scanned and tallied, but remain available should there be […]

Despite the League of Women Voters and virtually all newspapers throughout the country taking a clear position against the reporting of exit polls prior to the close of the local election day, the New Era once again ignored criticism and reported not only on the national scene but also the local Home Rule question. The […]

8 a.m.: Carter & MacRae Elementary School (Lancaster City 4th Ward, 1st Precinct)Just after 8:00 a.m., the poll workers at Carter & MacRae Elementary School at 251 S. Prince St. had seen 64 voters. Although there was not a long line, voters were streaming into the polling place at a sporadic but ongoing pace. I […]

At their next meeting on Nov. 11, Lancaster City Council will consider two resolutions authorizing applications to the state for funding for both renovations to the Central Market building and for facade work at the Historic Stevens & Smith site, adjoining the Convention Center. Central Market is expecting $3.5 million in state funding, and the […]

On Monday, Nov. 3, Theology on Tap discussion offers “Politics and Faith: Is it possible?” by Dr. Lee Barrett. The series is sponsored by St. James Episcopal Church to “share a setting where challenging and complex current cultural and religious faith issues are presented, shared and discussed.” The group meets at Annie Baileys, 28 E. […]

Tomorrow, Election Day, NewsLanc’s peripatetic reporter will post updates from polling places throughout the county from morning to night. Unlike the New Era, Matt Henderson will not be asking people how they voted. (Although there is nothing the matter with that so long as results are not published until after the polls close.) Instead, Henderson […]

In response to the question of whether he would be the County Administrator if the Home Charter is approved, Tom Baldrige, President of the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, stated “I have absolutely no interest in that position and I have tremendous amount of respect for the job that Charlie Douts is doing right now.”

A letter to NewsLanc raises the question of whether the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce has violated its 501(c)6 tax exempt status by lobbying for and participating in advertisements promoting a “Yes” vote for the Home Rule Charter. According to the web site of the Internal Revenue Service, “Seeking legislation germane to the common business interest […]