Permeable resin-bound surfacing can earn a share of Allentown's stormwater fee credit when it is the top layer of a stormwater facility the City accepts, built on an open-graded stone bed with Rock Crete or another permeable base on top with a maintenance agreement in place. As a new face on an old slab, it is still impervious area on your bill.

Allentown charges a stormwater utility fee on every property with 250 square feet or more of impervious area, measured in 500-square-foot billing units, and its credit manual names permeable pavers among typical credited facilities. The city drains to the Lehigh River and on to the Delaware, so its permit targets local sediment rather than Chesapeake Bay loads.

How Allentown's fee credit works

The stormwater utility fee is calculated from measured impervious area at a rate City Council sets each year, and it applies regardless of tax status. Owners can lower it three ways: remove impervious area, hold and comply with an industrial NPDES stormwater permit, or take credit for a stormwater facility installed on or after April 19, 2007, when the City adopted its Act 167 stormwater ordinance, now Chapter 538 of the City Code (formerly Article 1387).

Facility credits are scaled to sediment removal, because sediment is the pollutant Allentown must reduce under its MS4 permit. Facilities that cut sediment load by 10% or more earn a base credit of 20% to 30%; other facilities built to Chapter 538 earn 10%; voluntary facilities add a 20% bonus; and no property can exceed 50%. Each credited facility needs an executed maintenance agreement, at least 20 years for voluntary ones, and must keep passing City inspections. Voluntary designs must meet a standard that lets the City count pollutant reduction under its permit, so agree the design with City staff first.

Creeks, carbonate rock and older city fill

Allentown's MS4 reporting lists Cedar Creek, Little Cedar Creek, Jordan Creek, Little Lehigh Creek, Trout Creek and the Lehigh River as receiving waters. Parts of the Lehigh Valley are underlain by limestone and dolomite, where concentrated infiltration can open sinkholes, so the project engineer should check the geology before sizing a bed and may choose shallower, wider storage or a liner in karst areas.

The Pennsylvania Stormwater BMP Manual, which Allentown points designers to, describes pervious pavement with an infiltration bed: a permeable surface over a uniformly graded stone bed for storage and infiltration, with porous asphalt, porous concrete or porous pavers as the named surfaces. A resin-bound course has to show equivalent permeability and durability. Plan for freeze-thaw, winter salt and vacuum cleaning, and expect urban fill under older blocks to need testing or removal.

Where it fits in Allentown

Commercial and industrial lots: properties with many billing units, where a voluntary facility could approach the 50% cap.
Churches, schools and nonprofits: tax-exempt owners still pay the fee, so a credited facility is relevant to them too.
Rowhouse yards and alley parking: small areas where removing impervious surface can reduce billing units; ask how a permeable replacement will be measured.
Resident projects: the City's Community Engagement Program can offset part of the cost of practices that reduce pollution and flooding, with credits reduced by the City's share.

Approvals in Allentown and what we supply

The Bureau of Stormwater in the Department of Public Works administers the fee, credits and appeals and reviews facilities against Chapter 538; land development also passes through Planning and Zoning. Credit applications follow the Stormwater Utility Credit Manual, and a professional engineer or landscape architect may need to certify that an older facility works as designed.

Resin Rock supplies binder, stone blends, trims and the Rock Crete permeable sub-base, with technical data sheets your engineer can attach to a credit application. We do not install. Find an installer for an approved installer match, usually within 24 hours, or see Pennsylvania installer training.

Before you specify permeable resin-bound in Allentown

Check the parcel's measured impervious area on the City's Impervious Area Map.
Meet the Bureau of Stormwater on design standards before building a voluntary facility.
Have the engineer check for carbonate bedrock and sinkhole risk before sizing the bed.
Document sediment reduction to reach the higher credit tiers.
Budget for a maintenance agreement of at least 20 years.

Common questions about permeable resin-bound in Allentown

Can a resin-bound parking area earn Allentown's full 50% credit?

Only as part of a voluntary facility that cuts sediment load by 75% or more, which reaches the 50% total. The surface alone earns nothing; the credit attaches to the whole facility, its documented performance, an executed maintenance agreement and passing inspections, and it applies only to the impervious area that facility manages.

Does replacing my concrete patio with a permeable surface lower my fee?

Possibly, if the City agrees the area is no longer impervious and the change reduces your count of 500-square-foot billing units. Ask the Bureau of Stormwater how it will measure the new surface before you build, and keep the base design on file. Resurfacing over the old concrete does not change measured impervious area.

Is Allentown part of the Chesapeake Bay program?

No. Allentown drains to the Lehigh River, which flows to the Delaware. Its MS4 obligations focus on sediment in local streams such as the Little Lehigh and Jordan creeks, which is why the credit system is built around sediment removal rather than Bay nutrient targets.

Official sources for Allentown

Local rules change. We last checked these sources in October 2026. Confirm current requirements with the reviewing agency before you design, and treat this page as a starting point, not engineering or permitting advice.

Permeable Resin-Bound Surfacing in Allentown, PA