How an American City Can Become a Manufacturing Hub

What It Covers

Allentown, Pennsylvania Mayor Matt Turck explains how his city rebuilt its manufacturing base after deindustrialization, covering zoning reform, federal grant strategy, workforce development, and why component manufacturing in smaller urban buildings offers a replicable model for other American cities seeking reindustrialization.

Key Questions Answered

• •Weight-Gaining Industry Strategy: Cities within a day's drive of large populations should prioritize manufacturing that adds significant weight during production — such as beverages, where water is added locally. Allentown recruited Ocean Spray and Sam Adams on this logic, minimizing shipping costs by producing cranberry juice and beer close to the 100-million-person market radius.
• •Small-Footprint Component Manufacturing: Rather than competing for large assembly plants requiring River Rouge-scale facilities, cities should target component manufacturers needing 40,000–80,000 square feet. Allentown attracted suppliers making axles for Mack trucks and bottles for beverage producers, fitting existing urban building stock and enabling supply chain diversification without requiring greenfield industrial sites.
• •Form-Based Zoning Reform: Updating zoning codes from use-based to form-based — regulating building appearance rather than interior activity — allows cities to permit light industrial uses like craft brewing or garment assembly in residential neighborhoods. Allentown passed this reform in early 2026, enabling mixed-use manufacturing without the pollution concerns associated with legacy industrial zoning classifications.
• •Federal Grant Sequencing: Allentown secured a $20 million EDA Recompete implementation grant by first building internal data capacity through Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, then targeting a neighborhood with a 12% prime-age employment gap — double the city's 6% average. Demonstrating hyperlocal workforce data and pairing manufacturing job creation with childcare and transit solutions strengthened the application.
• •Proximity of Workers to Manufacturing Sites: Relocating production to suburban campuses disconnects residents — especially children — from manufacturing as a visible career path. Allentown's strategy of siting light industrial facilities within walkable urban neighborhoods mirrors the Mack Truck model from 1923, where workers lived adjacent to the plant, sustaining generational interest in manufacturing trades and reducing transportation barriers for carless workers.