Catasauqua This Week: Autumnfest, Boo at the Zoo, and Road Football

This week in Catasauqua and North Catasauqua opens with both borough councils meeting Monday evening, October 5, and peaks Sunday, October 11 when Autumnfest returns to Albert Memorial Park on Grove Street. The Rough Riders play a league road game at Northern Lehigh Saturday night, Oktoberfest at SteelStacks plays its final weekend, and the Lehigh Valley Zoo has set its Boo at the Zoo dates later in the month. The school district runs a full five-day week, then closes Monday, October 12 for the Columbus Day holiday. Here is what is happening in and around the two boroughs in the week ahead, plus a few new places to eat nearby.

Local News and Community Happenings

Monday, October 5 is meeting night in both boroughs. Catasauqua's council holds its committee and workshop session at 6:00 p.m. at the municipal building, 90 Bridge Street, following the borough's first-Monday pattern; the regular business meeting follows Monday, October 19 at 7:00 p.m. on the building's second floor. The planning commission meets Wednesday, October 21 at 6:30 p.m. Agendas and minutes post on catasauqua.org, and all three are open to the public. North Catasauqua's council also gathers Monday, October 5 at 7:00 p.m. at the borough hall, with the agenda and a Webex link for residents who want to attend remotely posted on the borough's website.

The weekend centerpiece stays close to home: the North Catasauqua Betterment Committee's annual Autumnfest is set for Sunday, October 11 at William J. Albert Memorial Park, 701 Grove Street, with the traditional following-Saturday rain date of October 17. The afternoon brings the usual festival mix: the car show, a craft and flea market, a food court, live music, kids' games and pumpkin decorating, and police and fire department displays. Grove Street is the same street the half twin at 514 Grove sits on, so the park is an easy walk from the front door.

At the Catasauqua Area School District

The district is in a clean stretch this week: full days of classes run Monday through Friday, October 5-9, with no holidays or early dismissals listed on the 2026-2027 district calendar. Families should then mark off two dates in the weeks ahead: Monday, October 12, when schools close for the Columbus Day holiday, and Wednesday, October 21, when all buildings dismiss early. The board of education's next regular meeting is Tuesday, October 13 from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at the District Administration Office, 201 N. 14th Street, Catasauqua. The downloadable district calendar on cattysd.org has the full list of holidays, in-service days, and board dates for the year.

Fall sports stay in full swing under the Rough Riders banner. Varsity football plays a league road game Saturday, October 10 at Northern Lehigh, with a 7:00 p.m. kickoff on the published 2026 schedule, while soccer, volleyball, and cross country are all in season as well. Game times and locations, plus any schedule changes, post on the Rough Riders athletics site at roughriderathletics.org, so check there before heading out.

Things to Do in the Area

The festivity that anchors the weekend is close to home: Autumnfest at Albert Memorial Park on Sunday, October 11, from a late-morning start into the afternoon. It is the simplest way to spend a fall day without leaving the borough: browse the craft and flea market, watch the classic car show, and let the kids try pumpkin decorating while local groups play on stage. And if the forecast threatens, the rain date is already picked: Saturday, October 17.

For a full festival weekend, ArtsQuest's Oktoberfest at SteelStacks in Bethlehem plays its final two days Friday through Sunday, October 9-11, closing out the two-weekend run with German food and beer, four biergartens, live music, dachshund races, and the Pennsylvania State Stein Holding Championship. Admission is free, and the SteelStacks campus at 101 Founders Way is about 20 minutes from Catasauqua. The same weekend, the Jim Thorpe Fall Foliage Festival opens its middle weekend, October 10-11, in historic downtown Jim Thorpe with craft and food vendors, live music, Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway rides, and lantern-lit ghost tours if you want a mountain road trip.

Looking a little further out, spooky season is officially getting its calendar set. Dorney Park's Halloween Haunt runs select weekend nights through October 31, including October 9-11, with this year's lineup adding the Blair Witch "No Signal" maze in Allentown. And the Lehigh Valley Zoo in Schnecksville has set its Boo at the Zoo celebration for two listed weekends, October 17-18 and October 24-25; the zoo's calendar points to more Halloween dates beyond that, so confirm the full schedule on lvzoo.org. Either is a roughly 25 to 30 minute drive from Catasauqua.

Good Places to Eat Nearby

This week's picks are spots we have not featured before. Pie's On Pizzeria at 106 Pine Street in Catasauqua is a neighborhood pizzeria in the borough with takeout and delivery; call (610) 264-7000 or see piesonpizzeria.com for the menu and hours. For a classic diner breakfast or a late lunch, the Whitehall Diner at 3026 MacArthur Road in Whitehall sits on the busy corridor a few minutes from the borough; call (610) 821-6880 or see whitehalldiner.com.

For coffee, Taylor Roasted CoffeeHouse at 1924 Main Street in Northampton is a roastery walk-up about a ten-minute drive up Route 329; call (610) 440-2552 or see taylorroastedcoffeehouse.com. It is a good stop on the way to the Fall Foliage Festival or a weekend hike.