130 Hope Street

Designed as a sculptural addition to the neighbourhood, the building features a distinctive textural brick façade with oscillating facets that echo the traditional row house streets of Brooklyn while embracing a contemporary design vision.

To achieve this ambitious architectural expression, IG Masonry Support was commissioned to engineer and supply bespoke masonry support solutions that ensured the structural performance of the façade while preserving its rhythm, scale,
and visual integrity.

North Elevation Double-sloped Apex Corner

A key challenge on the 130 Hope Street project was the double-sloped apex corner on the north elevation, which required a bespoke support system capable of fixing to steel at the base and to the concrete slab near the apex. The system had to precisely follow the angle along the slope, ensuring accurate alignment, effective load transfer, and structural stability at the complex junctions, all while meeting the façade’s architectural intent.

The underside of the apex corner presented a complex set of technical challenges. Its intricate geometry, combined with the specified brick bond pattern, required a highly precise brick slip system that could conform to non-linear surfaces without compromising the alignment of the bond. The system needed to allow for accurate installation on varying angles, accommodate differential tolerances between panels, and ensure long-term stability and adhesion, all while maintaining the visual continuity and texture of a traditional brick façade.

North-East Elevation Diamond-shaped Soffit Detail

On the second-floor north-east elevation, the architectural design featured a striking diamond-shaped soffit with multiple rectangular facets. While visually distinctive, this detail posed significant engineering challenges.

Unlike a conventional soffit, it required a support system capable of adapting to complex geometries and anchoring at several angles. At the same time, it had to maintain the architect’s precise brick coursing, ensuring both structural performance and the aesthetic integrity of the façade.

North Elevation Chamfered Soffit Detail

At the residential entrance on the building’s north elevation, the architect introduced a large chamfered soffit to form a lightwell. The surrounding walls slanted inward and narrowed toward the entrance before continuing upward to the parapet, creating a sharply angled façade. This geometry made the soffit detail challenging to design and construct, requiring precise coordination to ensure structural integrity, visual alignment, and the intended lightwell effect.

Brick Type and Bond Pattern – Arriscraft Georgetown Blend

The use of Arriscraft’s Georgetown Blend brick added an additional layer of complexity to the project. Its weathered finish, 2-1/4” face height, and irregular lengths of up to 23-5/8” delivered the desired old-meets-new aesthetic but made prefabrication and panel alignment particularly challenging. Achieving consistent coursing and maintaining vertical joint offsets required careful planning and precision engineering.

Owing to the complex geometry at 130 Hope Street, IG Masonry Support worked closely with Reliable Masonry to obtain on-site measurements, ensuring all components, including 1,080 Brick Slip Soffit Panels, were delivered and installed with precision.

North Elevation Double-sloped Apex Corner

To address the complex geometry of the double-sloped apex corner, IG Masonry Support engineered bespoke Welded Masonry Support and B.O.S.S.® (Brick on Soffit Systems). The design kept the brackets vertical while the shelves followed the brickwork angle, ensuring precise alignment and efficient load transfer between the steel and concrete interfaces. The lightweight B.O.S.S.® units were bolted to the WMS for a secure fit that perfectly matched the slope requirements.

Brick Slip Soffit Panels were also designed and manufactured with the random brick bond required, maintaining consistent joint spacing and preventing perp joints from aligning with the surrounding façade. Exact slope geometry was derived from architectural plans, and close collaboration with the site team ensured seamless integration.

North-East Elevation Diamond-shaped Soffit Detail

Brick Slip Soffit Panels for the diamond-shaped soffit were designed to bolt to a pre-installed steel frame. Each panel adapted to the changing angles, with bricks laid to maintain the specified random brick bond and avoid aligned vertical joints. IG Masonry Support’s design ensured tight tolerances and seamless alignment, balancing structural performance with the architect’s visual intent.

North Elevation Chamfered Soffit Detail

IG Masonry Support designed and manufactured prefabricated Brick Slip Soffit Panels precisely angled to accommodate the chamfered soffit while maintaining tight alignment tolerances.

B.O.S.S.® units defined the soffit’s outer edge, with the panels integrating seamlessly—wrapping from the front façade, extending beneath the walkway, and returning up the angled wall to form the lightwell. Each junction featured expansion joints and controlled offsets to maintain coursing continuity and enable efficient on-site installation.

Brick Type & Bond Pattern – Arriscraft Georgetown Blend

The Georgetown Blend brick was carefully selected by J Frankl Architects for the project. The bricks were shipped from Toronto, Canada, to IG Masonry Support’s Brick Cutting Facility, where they were precisely bonded to each brick slip system to maintain accurate coursing, alignment, and joint offsets. This prefabrication process enabled the panels to be manufactured with precision prior to delivery, allowing for efficient on-site installation while preserving the architect’s intended “old-meets-new” aesthetic.

For full details on our challenges and solutions, including technical drawings and installation imagery, read our 130 Hope Street case study brochure: 

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