There are ten basic block types in West Philadelphia: rowhouses with stoops; rowhouses with porches; rowhouses with tiny front yards; detached houses with yards; sides of houses; apartment blocks; rows of stores; large free-standing buildings; and a mixture of these types. There are variations within each block type; nevertheless, each type represents a specific environment with particular opportunities and limitations for change (see The West Philadelphia Landscape Plan: Shaping the Block. Blocktypes are separated into those aligned east/west and north/south (shown below).

Blocktype		Map Color
1	Rowhouses w/stoops	Light Purple
2	Rowhouses w/porches	Blue
3	Rowhouses w/porches & small front yards	Gray
4	Rowhouses w/ Courtyards	Orange
5	Houses w/ Front Yards	Purple
6	Apartment Blocks	Light Blue
7	Large/Free-standing Buildings	Green
8	Sides of Houses	yellow
9	Rows of Stores	white
10	Mixture of Types	red

The block is the smallest unit of neighborhood, where the private domain of the home meets the public domain of the city. The private space of stoops, porches, yards, and houses and the public space of street and sidewalk define the character of the block. Variations in width of street and sidewalk, height and setback of buildings, and the presence or absence of porches and front yards combine to form distinctly different block types.

Many sources, including the U.S. Census, define a block as bordered by four streets. Here, blocks are defined as buildings facing each other across a street. Though more difficult to delineate, this is more closely related to the social functions of a block.

In American cities, the block is often the focus of daily, public life. It is home territory for those who live in adjacent houses. For young children, it is a playground--the center of play outside the home; its boundaries may also define a child's world during pre-teen years. For adults, the block is a meeting place and a stage. Stoops, porches, and front windows provide prospects from which to watch and engage in the theater of street life. At the heart of the block is the street which links each house with the next and with the rest of the city, part of the network of streets that structures the city and knits it together.

Rowhouses with stoops, porches, or tiny front yards, often in combination with one another, are the most common block types in West Philadelphia, particularly north of Market Street. Detached houses with front yards is another common block type in West Philadelphia, particularly south of Market Street in Spruce Hill and garden Court and north of Market in Powelton Village. Sometimes a street is flanked by the sides of houses, rather than front doors, yielding "sides of houses." Blocks lined by large apartment buildings occur throughout West Philadelphia. Rows of stores, usually attached buildings, form commercial blocks, sometimes with apartments in the upper floors. Large, free-standing buildings, whether for offices or apartments, are a relatively new block type, built since the 1950s, and are a distinct departure from surrounding, older neighborhoods. Finally, there are some blocks that are a mixture of several of these other block types.

Further information on blocktypes and their implications can be found in The West Philadelphia Landscape Plan: Shaping the Block.