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The city of Livermore is poised this summer to begin a $2.5 million project to repair over 450 miles of privately maintained, uneven walkways across the city.
Dubbed the sidewalk slicing project, the initiative is set to smooth over 90% of the sidewalk hazards in the city, beginning with the city’s central zone this summer, followed by Springtown this fall, northwest Livermore this winter and the remaining areas by next summer.
The Livermore City Council greenlit the project and associate funding via unanimous tally during its Monday regular meeting.
“This project allows us to quickly enhance the existing quality of life in our community,” Mayor John Marchand said in a statement announcing the project approval. “By making this investment, the City is virtually eliminating a backlog of sidewalk repairs that could otherwise take years for residents, business owners, and City staff to resolve.”
As part of the city’s asset management program, Livermore officials discovered about 16,000 sidewalk deflections adjacent to about 11,000 properties in the public sidewalk network, according to a staff report prepared by Livermore associate civil engineer Christopher Ferrel.
Property owners have historically been responsible for sidewalk maintenance, but the city is stepping in to foot the bill of “eligible slicing repairs”, according to the statement by city officials.
City staff determined that sidewalk slicing was the most cost-effective method of addressing 15,000 of the sidewalk deflections. Using the method, sidewalk panels do not need to be removed and replaced.
“Slicing these deflections will improve pedestrian safety, connectivity and ADA accessibility while significantly reducing the need for full sidewalk replacement,” Ferrel said. “The concrete slicing work will correct over 90% of Livermore’s sidewalk hazards and significantly reduce costly trip-and-fall liability exposure.”
In total, the project is set to address 461 miles of uneven walkways, including about 390 miles in residential neighborhoods, 40 miles in commercial areas and 31 miles in industrial zones.
The remaining 1,000 deflections will require full sidewalk repair or replacement, Ferrel said.
“City staff will continue working directly with property owners to address these remaining locations,” according to city officials.
During the meeting Monday, Councilmember Evan Branning expressed his excitement about the project.
“It costs less than we thought it would. It’s covering more of the sidewalk than we thought it would. It’s making the city a much nicer place for everyone,” Branning said.
The sole public commenter on the item also expressed support for the initiative.
Funding for the project and a related contract amendment came before the council as a consent item, which are typically considered uncontroversial and passed with a single motion.
As part of the council’s supportive vote, it agreed to reappropriated funds from the State Gas Tax Fund 560 ($500,000) and Alameda County Measure BB ($450,000) for the Bluebell Drive bridge repair at Altamont Creek project as well as county Measure F ($750,000) for the downtown sidewalk and miscellaneous ADA improvements project.
The repair and improvements projects are anticipated to begin in 2028 and funding will be appropriated to each in the 2027-2032 capital improvement plan, according to Ferrel.
In addition to the reappropriations, the council gave permission to the city manager to amend a contract agreement with Precision Emprise, LLC, operating as Precision Concrete
Cutting, for on-call concrete cutting services. The contract amount increased to $4 million, up from $1 million, and was extended to Dec. 30, 2030, according to Ferrel.
Although the additional contracted authority is $3 million, staff estimate that $2.5 million will be sufficient for the slicing work.
Prior to the sidewalk slicing project, the city has addressed nearly 9,000 uneven sidewalk locations and installed or upgraded over 200 curb ramps of city-maintained infrastructure since 2020.
In addition to the sidewalk slicing project, the city is pursuing the downtown bluestone project to replace existing bluestone sidewalks with stamped concrete for improved durability and easier maintenance. About 15,000 square feet have been replaced so far with the remaining 46,000 square feet set for replacement beginning in 2028.
For more information about the sidewalk slicing project, visit the city website at www.LivermoreCA.gov/SlicingProject.
