I strolled around the building yesterday and spoke with Al, the site supervisor for the masonry company doing our work.  I took a few photos too, and have added some by Paul Nixdorf.  Al and his crew are working to match the new bricks to the old ones, something of a challenge in that one of the former brick colors is no longer made.  So you see a photo here of bricks lined up for color comparison.

Another twist:  Whereas the estimate of the number of bricks needed to repair the sign was 70,  the actual number was closer to 110.  That's because any damage to the back of the bricks cannot be seen until the work actually begins, and several bricks were cracked from the back and needed to be replaced as well.

Al has been doing this work for over 20 years.  He said that his next challenge was to figure out how to maneuver the "cherry picker" for the work on the main part of the south side of the building.   It is likely that the company will need to pull a permit to have the machine in the street for a while because it cannot get past the retaining wall around the yard.

Here are the photos:

The sign before bricks are inserted and mortared in place

Two views of the sign after brickwork is finished.   An acid wash is applied to help the new mortar blend in with the old.

Bricks lined up to match colors.

Working on the south transept peak on the 31st Street side of the building

Working at ground level

More ground level work.