Council awards 2025 sidewalk replacement contract as residents press city on cleanup and contractor performance

Harper Woods — The City Council awarded the 2025 sidewalk replacement contract to Hartwell Cement Company for $142,262.50 and heard an extended public record of resident complaints about unfinished work, trenches and dirt left by prior sidewalk contractors.

City staff presented the bid-tabulation and recommended awarding the work to Hartwell Cement Company of Oak Park. During public comment and council discussion, residents including Theresa Foster and other speakers said recent sidewalk replacements left trenches, mounds of dirt and unseeded areas that blocked pedestrian use and posed safety concerns. “I have a handicap person on my street that has to go into the street to go around the piles of dirt,” Theresa Foster said during public comment.

Council members noted that some prior sidewalk work was done under a TAP (Transportation Alternatives Program) grant that required specific contractors selected by the state; that work remains incomplete in places. Staff and DPW representatives said Hartwell is a different contractor, has a history of work in nearby Eastpointe and the city will press current contractors to finish incomplete work. The city said it attempted to obtain three quotes for repairs to a city-owned building but only one vendor responded; staff recommended waiving competitive bidding for that building repair item (separate agenda item).

By roll call vote the council awarded the 2025 sidewalk replacement contract to Hartwell Cement Company in the amount of $142,262.50. Council asked staff and DPW to follow up on outstanding cleanup and to confirm which sidewalk segments fall under TAP grant work versus city-funded sidewalk replacement.