sidewalksaver.com Blog

Mid west USA Cities are increasingly following the West Coast offense and implimenting the Diamond Cup grinding solution for maintaining their sidewalks.   The benefits to homeowners are obviously lower costs and the availability of a mid term solution to a problem that they are made aware of each time they shovel snow or simply walk on their own sidewalk.    Most responsible homeowners would minimize the trip hazard if only they had a low cost, convenient method for doing so.

Now, by applying the methods used for many years in California and cities like Portland, Oregon,  mid-west cities such as Columbus, OH have approved this process for at least some of the observed problems.

The benefits to cities and neighborhoods are the elimination of problems while they are small by simple periodic grinding.  Some politicians refer to this as the “Broken Window” theory – take care of the small problems and the big problems will take care of themselves.

Even the relatively steep step shown below can be made safer with a grinding operation on the left side of the raised block, although this would clearly be a temporary solution as the codes and procedures in many cities would require blocks such as these to be removed and replaced.

The Sidewalk below shows multiple trip hazards caused by a single, relatively small  tree.  In order to repair this type of a hazard, the costs would be the replacement costs for 3 perfectly good concrete sidewalk blocks.     Of course, the tree will keep growing so that in 2 or 3 years the new blocks would need to be replaced again.

Rather than waiting for the problem to get worse over time, diamond cup grinding for these blocks would require a minimal amount of work and would eliminate the Stub-Toe Trip Hazard liability for a fraction of the costs, providing a temporary reprieve for the same 2 – 3 years when additional grinding could perhaps be used or not, according to conditions and local codes.

Grind It!  Cut It!  Fix It! ™            http://sidewalksaver.com/blog1/ 

                                                       http://sidewalksaver.com
Sidewalker

On a pleasant 15-MAY-2007 afternoon walk along Mission Bay’s “Boardwalk” we had an excellent opportunity to see how well a public walkway can be maintained with the Sidewalk Savers system of Diamond Cup Grinding.     The “Boardwalk”, of course, is actually made of concrete and it is used regularly by walkers, joggers, bicyclists, skate-boarders, in-line skaters, wheelchair riders, and parents pushing baby strollers.     All of these users have one common need, a smooth walkway with no bumps or “stub-toe” trip hazards.

Here we can see an area where many hazards have been eliminated by grinding.   It is amazing to think of how many skinned and bloody young knees were avoided by this simple 20 minute correction over the past year!     The only loser in this case is the Band-Aid Business!

A pickup truck, a wagon, and a few thousand dollars worth of equipment would be enough to get started saving public walkways and park sidewalks from the threats of stub-toe trip hazard liability.    

Whether it is done by the cities themselves or by sub-contracted service providers, the ongoing maintenance is readily accomplished at a fraction of the costs of removal and replacement.      What other business offers an endless supply of fixed location workpieces to be repaired by such a simple procedure as diamond grinding?      Isn’t it time for states, counties, and cities to demand that the hazards be eliminated rather than painted with “alert orange” paint?

Grind It. Cut It. Fix It. ™

City engineers and maintenance agencies are welcome to visit www.sidewalksaver.com  for a complete list of everything they need to get started. We look forward to hearing or reading comments on your own experiences.  

http://www.sidewalksaver.com/               http://sidewalksaver.com/blog1/  

Sidewalker

Spring Fever means it’s time for the Annual Sidewalk Safety Inspection and repair.

Just in time for all the Springtime outdoor activities, it is important for every homeowner, shopkeeper, or Apartment manager, and every City or Park Maintenance Department to perform annual Sidewalk Safety Inspections and to grind down those annoying and dangerous Stub-Toe Hazards.

Here in Ohio, it is wonderful to enjoy the first warm days of Spring as walkers, strollers, children on tricycles or walking to school, skate-boarders, bicycles, and wheel chairs get out and start moving past our homes. Today it reached 78 Degrees!

Naturally, we want neighbors and passers-by to be safe as they walk, jog, or ride past our homes and businesses. There is also the additional peace of mind that comes from preventing exposure to negligence liability claims, either personally or for our Insurance companies. An annual expenditure of less than one or two hundred dollars and/or a few hours of time can make everybody’s life a lot Smoother.

What are you doing in your Neighborhood? In your city? Please post your comments and let us know if you need help getting your city to take an active interest.

Grind It. Cut It. Fix It. ™

Sidewalker