28 Distillation Guidebook Co-Lab • 9.18–9.19 2025 This same logic guided how building types were integrated with use designations to support greater density across the city. One important building designation is the Small General Building type, which is a small apartment building of three units, with up to 12 units allowed with special exception. This building type exists in Allentown, but they do not form a consistent pattern and are dispersed rather than clustered on specific blocks. This building type is both preferred by residents and something planners want to encourage. With three to twelve units (depending on location), these Small General buildings are a classic “missing middle” housing type, bridging the gap between single-family homes and larger multi-family buildings. As Melissa observed, “I think everybody’s going to want to be a Small General because of the ability to convert to apartments without the density barriers that were in place in the previous code. The additional density that would be allowed helps us meet goals of additional housing and affordability.” Since Small General buildings align with community preferences and longterm housing goals, Zone Allentown permits them broadly, making them allowable in nearly half of all zoning districts and in previously multi-family zoned neighborhoods that had large lot width and area requirements that restricted low-scale multi-family from occuring. This iteration helps to increase density and generate compact walkable neighborhoods. A similar story is true for the “House B Court” type. “The House B Court –Trevor Tormann One of the core intentions of Zone Allentown was really pointing growth to our corridors and letting that growth happen.
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