ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The iconic PPL Tower in downtown Allentown is officially under new ownership.
PPL Electric Utilities this week completed the sale of its 24-story building — the tallest in the Lehigh Valley — to Wilkes-Barre-based developer D&D Realty.
The tower hit the market in August 2023, months after PPL Corp. announced a plan to move its corporate headquarters to Two City Center at Seventh and Hamilton streets.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in July unanimously approved the sale of the PPL Tower and the complex at 2 N. Ninth St.
D&D Realty plans to build more than 100 apartments across 20 of the tower’s 24 floors. A restaurant is planned for the first floor, with commercial tenants on the second. Its top two floors would be used for mechanical equipment.
Allentown Zoning Hearing Board in December approved the developer’s adaptive-reuse application to convert the building into housing.
"A residential PPL Tower would serve as “a beacon” for the Lehigh Valley as officials and organizations throughout the region work to address a “tremendous need” for housing."Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
D&D partner Nicholas Dye told LehighValleyNews.com last year that crews would start gutting the tower after his company completed its purchase.
The project to demolish and reconstruct much of the building’s interior is set to occur simultaneously and last about two years, Dye said.
D&D Realty, founded in 2010, develops properties while also providing brokerage, management and construction services for commercial and residential real estate.
Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk last year said a residential PPL Tower would serve as “a beacon” for the Lehigh Valley as officials and organizations throughout the region work to address a “tremendous need” for housing.
