How to Repair a City Sidewalk

Keep the city beautiful by maintaining sidewalks.

"Don't step on the cracks, you'll break your mother's back," the childhood rhyme goes. But those cracks and bumps in the city sidewalk may pose a real hazard to those walking outside your home. When the sidewalks in your neighborhood are risky to those using them, they should be repaired. While some cities perform sidewalk repairs for free, some require homeowners to bear the expense. Even if repairs are your financial responsibility, you can't just fix the problem on your own; every individual city has its own criteria for making sidewalk repairs that must be followed.

Instructions

1. Call your city hall to determine which department handles sidewalk issues. In most cities, sidewalk repairs fall under the umbrella of the public works department. In the case of sidewalks uprooted by city trees, other departments such as the forestry service may also need to be included in the repair process. Most cities have strict rules about how to handle tree and root removal that must be adhered to.

2. Report the problem to the appropriate department and obtain the city's criteria for sidewalk repair. In some cases, the city will repair the sidewalk at no expense, especially if the damage is a danger to children, elderly or handicapped users. Other cities will make the repairs for you, but require the homeowner to pay for some or all of the service. Still other cities allow homeowners to hire contractors to perform the work, but will also require permits and dictate who is qualified to do the job.

3. Get the proper permits. If your city leaves the responsibility for sidewalk repair to the homeowner, you will still need to obtain the proper permits before performing the repair.

4. Hire a city-bonded contractor to perform the work. Get a list of contractors that are qualified by the city to perform the work. Most contractors are required to have a set amount of public liability insurance.

Tips & Warnings

• While you may know how to fix a city sidewalk, or even be a licensed contractor, you cannot do the work yourself. Only city-bonded contractors can officially repair city sidewalks.

References

• City of Long Beach: Sidewalk Repair Program
• City of Ann Arbor: Sidewalk Inspections and Maintenance
• City of Minneapolis: Sidewalk Repair Options
• City of Los Angeles: GF/CDBG Sidewalk Reconstruction Program