On a designated Brooklyn building, brickwork does not start with the wall. It starts with the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s rules, which treat mortar joints, cleaning and replacement brick as separate pieces of work, and often with sample panels that have to be approved before anything else is touched.
Section 2-11 of Title 63 of the Rules of the City of New York governs repair of facades on designated buildings, and it does not treat brick work as one job. Cleaning falls under §2-11(c)(1), pointing mortar joints under §2-11(c)(3), repair of brick and other fired clay under §2-11(c)(5), and in-kind replacement under §2-11(d)(1)(i). Each has its own criteria.
As brickwork contractors in Brooklyn we build a scope for a designated building task by task against those sections. LPC staff approve work that meets the rule’s criteria, and permits often require installed samples of mortar color, texture, joint cutting and tooling before the main work begins. Getting those samples right is what makes historic brick repair here go smoothly.
Three kinds of brick work come up most often, and each is reviewed on its own terms.
Raking, cutting and refilling joints is covered by §2-11(c)(3), and the samples usually show the cutting, mortar color, texture and tooling. On a designated Brooklyn front the joints are the most closely watched part of any brick pointing job.
Cleaning and removal of coatings fall under §2-11(c)(1), and the method matters as much as the result, because harsh cleaning damages brick for good. On Brooklyn brick that means brick pressure washing at the gentlest setting that works.
Repair of fired clay units sits under §2-11(c)(5), and replacing them in kind under §2-11(d)(1)(i). New units have to suit the originals on a Brooklyn front, which is where sourcing for brick replacement begins.
Whether or not the building is designated, the work falls into one of these.
Joints, cleaning, repair and replacement are listed separately, each tied to its part of §2-11. On a designated Brooklyn building that is how the application reads and how the work is later checked.
Mortar color, texture, joint cutting and tooling are laid up at the locations that need repair, so the Commission sees the real thing on the real wall. Main work waits until those Brooklyn samples are approved.
Once approved, the samples become the standard for the whole elevation. Every joint and every replaced unit on the Brooklyn front is held to what was signed off, not to a general idea of it.
What an owner can expect from a brick contractor in Brooklyn who knows how Landmarks reviews brick.
Most trouble on designated Brooklyn fronts comes from work that started before anyone agreed what it should look like. Joints raked too wide, mortar a shade too bright, a tooled profile the building never had. Each is small on its own, and together they are exactly what LPC’s rules exist to prevent. The sample panels settle all of that on the wall before the scaffold fills up. Ask anyone quoting a designated Brooklyn building which parts of §2-11 their work falls under and where the samples will go. The answer tells you how the job will run.
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If the building is designated, usually yes. LPC’s rules at §2-11 of Title 63 cover pointing, cleaning, brick repair and in-kind replacement on designated facades, and each has criteria the work must meet. On a Brooklyn building that is not designated, the Commission has no role in the brick work.
A small area of the proposed work installed on the actual wall for LPC staff to review. For brick it typically shows the joint cutting, mortar color, texture and tooling. Permits on designated Brooklyn buildings are often issued on condition that these samples are approved before the main work starts.
Section 2-11 of Title 63 of the Rules of the City of New York. Cleaning falls under §2-11(c)(1), pointing under §2-11(c)(3), repair of fired clay units such as brick under §2-11(c)(5), and in-kind replacement under §2-11(d)(1)(i). A Brooklyn scope is best written against those parts.
Yes, under §2-11(c)(1) of LPC’s rules, provided the method meets the rule’s criteria. The approach matters because harsh cleaning can permanently damage a brick face. On a designated Brooklyn front the cleaning method is often part of the samples reviewed before the rest of the work goes ahead.
Yes. Replacing brick in kind falls under §2-11(d)(1)(i) of LPC’s rules, so new units have to suit the originals in size, color and finish. On older Brooklyn fronts finding suitable brick is often the slowest part of the job, and it is worth starting early.
