The windstorms that battered the area with hurricane-force winds this summer caused almost $22,000 worth of damage to Fort Wayne sidewalks.
The Board of Public Works opened bids Wednesday for sidewalk, streets and driveway-apron repairs in 23 locations.
The low bidder appeared to be Rock Solid Concrete, with a bid of $21,883. Officials had estimated the work could cost $32,813.
The contract will cover areas where city trees ripped up concrete and asphalt as they fell, and the schedule calls for the project to be completed by Oct. 21. But the work will cover damage caused only by street trees, which are the city’s responsibility.
On June 29, a rare, powerful storm called a super derecho lashed the city with wind gusts of 91 mph. A Category 1 hurricane has sustained winds of 75 mph.
The storm ripped down hundreds of trees, shredded utility poles and snapped off branches like twigs, hitting houses, crushing cars and knocking out power for thousands of people for almost a week. Six days later, a second windstorm did much the same thing on a smaller scale.
At one point, more than 118,000 Indiana Michigan Power customers in the region were without power.
Some of the trees, torn out by their roots, lifted concrete and asphalt into the air with them. The contract covers stump removal and surface repairs.
The cost of the storms to the city was already approaching $2 million, which included $900,000 spent hiring contractors to help remove debris from city streets. That did not include $600,000 in damage to city buildings or vehicles expected to be covered by insurance.
South Anthony project
The board received bids for curbs and sidewalk reconstruction along South Anthony Boulevard. The low bidder appeared to be Key Concrete, at $74,634. The estimated cost for the project was $99,613.
