$8M in sidewalk repairs coming to Detroit neighborhoods

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More than 5,400 sidewalks across Detroit will be repaired under an $8 million agreement approved by the City Council.

The contract with Detroit-based Giorgi Concrete LLC and Major Contracting Group will largely address the backlog of more than 6,300 sidewalks identified for repair as of Jan. 1, 2026. The remaining sites in the backlog will be covered with $1.5 million left over from a prior sidewalk repair allocation, according to Detroit Public Works Director Ron Brundidge.

“This year, the contractors are going to be going to targeted locations and specific locations where residents requested and need to have sidewalks replaced,” Brundidge told the council’s Public Health and Safety committee on Monday. “We’re not doing wholesale replacement of sidewalks on individual blocks or neighborhoods.”

Work is currently underway in District 1, he said, and additional districts will be assigned to Giorgi.

District 6 Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero said she’s eager for the work to get done, but said it typically comes with confusion among residents.

“Sidewalk repair is exciting, but also becomes frustrating when not done immediately,” she told Brundidge during Monday’s committee meeting. “I’m just remembering stories of residents having slabs of concrete removed and open for weeks. I’m going to assume we’re going to do the repairs quickly, but that is one concern I want to make sure we won’t see again.”

Some residents, she said, walk out the door in the morning or come from work in the evening and their sidewalk is gone. And then they wait weeks for it to be filled again.

“Are we going to announce that sidewalk repairs are happening?” she asked.

Brundidge said DPW will notify residents prior to any construction beginning, and the notifications will occur in two separate phases. Two weeks before the work starts, he said, flyers will be placed from the City of Detroit, and inspectors will mark the impacted sections of sidewalk. Then, a couple of days before, a contractor will place door knockers to alert homeowners that the work will be starting within two to three days.

He also confirmed that the notices will be translated for Spanish, Arabic, Bengali and French-speaking residents.

Councilman Denzel McCampbell asked Brundidge how residents can report any concerns they have about the quality of the work of contractors, damages or other concerns.

Brundidge said the contracted work will be monitored by inspectors from the city’s engineering division. They will evaluate the quality of the concrete, ensure it’s poured correctly and that it’s ADA compliant. Brundidge said that the flyers being distributed to households will have information about how to report concerns. If a sprinkler system is damaged during the repair or replacement process, it will be replaced at no cost to the city or the resident, Brundidge noted.

He also said residents can visit the DPW website to request an inspection of their sidewalks to be added to the city’s list for potential repair.

“We’re not going to jump over folks waiting patiently for multiple years that are on the sidewalk list for 2026, but recognize this is an ongoing process,” Brundidge said.

The sidewalk repair funding was among the priorities outlined in Mayor Mary Sheffield’s 2026-27 budget plan.

Last year, Brundidge said, there was $3.5 million total available for sidewalk repair work, compared with the $8 million available this year. It’s unclear how much will come through for next year, he said.

“That’ll go a long way in how we prioritize which sidewalk work is done and which, unfortunately, will have to be delayed until a future year,” he said.