Masonry Contractor in Alphabet City, Manhattan

Local Conditions

What Masonry Work Do Alphabet City Buildings Need?

Old tenements, a few row houses and some newer mid rise buildings share these blocks. The masonry needs follow the age of the building: rebuilt parapets and chimneys, replaced brick, repaired stoop walls, and areaway and cellar walls that bulge or leak where water meets the foundation.

On a tenement, the parapet and the cornice take the worst weather. Bricks loosen, copings crack and sections lean. A leaning parapet should not wait, because pieces can fall to the sidewalk below.

At street level, stoop sides, areaway walls and the walls around cellar stairs sit in the splash zone. Salt and standing water break down the brick from the bottom. We rebuild the damaged section and finish the top so water runs off instead of in.

The blocks near Avenue C and Avenue D sit low near the East River. Walls near grade there can stay damp, and damp walls spall faster in freeze and thaw cycles.

Rowhouse owners face a different list. A stoop may have a stone or brick side wall that leans after years of water behind it. Chimney stacks above the roofline lose their caps and let rain into the flue. Each of these is a repair we scope on site rather than guess at.

Community gardens and open lots on the lettered avenues leave bare party walls exposed to weather. A wall that was once shared with a neighbor can need new coating or repair once the building next to it is gone.