Livonia to use precision cutting, $55,000 in Section 3 to reduce sidewalk trip hazards

Todd Zielinski, city engineer for Livonia, said the city will perform precision cutting on sidewalks in Sections 3, 16, 17, 21 and 34 under a $55,000 program aimed at reducing trip hazards caused by tree roots.

Zielinski said the technique focuses on cutting and releveling specific locations rather than removing entire slabs. "Our goal is to try to make our city sidewalk safe," he said, adding that precision cutting can be done quicker, reduce damage to sprinkler systems and limit restoration work.

The city plans to use precision cutting this year in the named sections and is budgeting $55,000 for that work, Zielinski said. He also said the city has about 550 sidewalk locations citywide slated for replacement at a combined cost of just under $1 million; that total includes sidewalk ramps. The presentation did not specify a full-slab replacement cost per flag.

Zielinski described the per-location cost of precision cutting as roughly $80 and said the method is intended to be a lower-cost alternative to larger-scale slab removal. He said large tree roots, including those from mature sycamore trees in boulevards, have raised sidewalk flags and created vertical separations that pose trip hazards to pedestrians, postal workers, people with disabilities and children.

He noted the timing: the city’s construction season runs from April through November, so temporary cold patches are used to address hazards outside that window or until a permanent repair can be scheduled. Zielinski provided the Engineering Department phone number, (734) 466-2655, for residents to report sidewalks with vertical separation or trip hazards.

No formal vote or council action on a contract was recorded during the presentation. The comments were presented as information about the annual sidewalk repair program and planned work for the season.