Sidewalk Renewal

School may be out but there is no shortage of learning experiences all around in the city. Just this morning I watched a small crew of construction workers repair a portion of the sidewalk across the street from my apartment. It was an interesting process to observe.

The crew had already removed the broken sidewalk a few days prior so all that existed was the remaining sidewalk to attach to and the soil beneath it.

The started by leveling the soil. Soon a concrete truck came by an the men set about pouring concrete into the opening. Using shovels, rakes, and floats (they look like the linear mops but without the fluffy part) the men set about filling the entire hole evenly with concrete. The floats were used to smooth out the top of the concrete. Once this was finished a guy came by throughout the day to check on the sidewalk. It looked like he was using a leaf blower to dry it out faster.

From my previous construction classes I understood that water would be poured over the concrete or a cover would be placed over it to help it cure in proper conditions. Perhaps since this is not structural there is less concern about it curing properly. Rather the crew seemed more keen on getting it set and dried so that the sidewalk could be fully open to the public. Either way I am sure the storm this evening will help out the new addition to the sidewalk.