Facade repair vs facade restoration, and which one you need
Facade repair is targeted: the spalled brick at the fourth-floor sill, the cracked lintel over the entrance, the loose stone at the cornice, the unsafe condition on page three of a FISP report. Facade restoration is the whole elevation, taken back to sound material and rebuilt. Most buildings need the first. A facade repair contractor who only sells the second is quoting the wrong job, and a facade repair NYC owners can afford starts with that distinction.
In New York the trigger is usually a Local Law 11 finding. The engineer's report lists conditions by location; the DOB sets the deadline; the building needs a contractor who can price each condition, pull the permits, and carry the work through to sign-off and shed removal without the scope wandering. We bid building facade repair condition by condition so the board sees what is required, what is recommended, and what the access costs.
Brick, stucco and stone are all in-house at LANY, so one crew handles a mixed commercial facade without hand-offs between trades. The spalled brick, the failed stucco panel beside it and the displaced coping above both are repaired under one license, one shed and one close-out package.
Brick, Stucco & Stone Facades: building facade repair we perform
Brick Facade Repair
Spalling brick, deteriorated mortar joints, cracked or rusted lintels and shelf angles, and displaced parapets. We replace failed brick with matched units, repoint with composition-matched mortar, replace steel where steel has failed, and reinstate the flashing that keeps water out of the wall.
Stucco Facade Repair
Cracked, hollow, bulging or water-damaged stucco is removed to sound material and rebuilt in three coats, with the color and texture matched to the elevation. The flashing and joints that let the water in are corrected as part of the same repair.
Stone, Terracotta & Cornice Repair
Loose or spalled limestone, brownstone and cast stone, cracked terracotta units and deteriorated cornices are secured, patched with compatible repair mortars or replaced in kind. Pinning and anchoring are documented for the engineer where the finding was a falling hazard.
Local Law 11 Findings to Sign-Off
We take the QEWI's conditions list, confirm each item at height, price it line by line, file the permits, perform the repairs and deliver the photographs and documentation your engineer needs to reclassify the conditions and close the cycle.
Access, Sheds & Scaffolding
On a facade repair the sidewalk shed, swing stage or pipe scaffold is often the largest single line. We price access separately and up front, sequence the repairs so one mobilization covers every condition on the elevation, and work the schedule so the shed comes down when the repairs are signed off rather than billing month after month.
Recent NYC projects
Free Facade Inspection to sign-off: Same-Crew All Trades
We start with a free facade inspection or, if you already have one, a review of the FISP report and any engineer correspondence. Conditions are confirmed on site at height, photographed and mapped by elevation and location, so the scope reflects the wall rather than the paperwork alone.
The written scope lists each repair by elevation and location, marked required or recommended, with DOB permits, sidewalk shed and access priced separately. Boards can approve the required scope immediately and phase the rest. Permits, the shed and any suspended scaffold are filed and erected under our own license.
Our in-house crews perform the brick, stucco and stone repairs in one mobilization. At completion the building receives an engineer sign-off package: photographs of every repaired condition, materials used, permit sign-offs and our written workmanship warranty, formatted so the QEWI can file against it without a second site visit.
What NYC building owners say
FISP findings or visible facade damage?
Free facade inspection in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx.
Frequently Asked Questions
Facade repair, not patching.
From the finding to the sign-off, one licensed facade repair contractor for brick, stucco and stone.
Related: Facade Restoration Contractor in NYC