DEARBORN — The city has helped a 61-year-old woman keep her home after she claimed she was injured and lost her job when she tripped on an elevated sidewalk slab in April.

Dearborn resident Maria Gavrau and her attorney Rick Martin attempt to address City Council on Nov. 3. Martin was prevented from speaking about a pending lawsuit, but on Nov. 7 the Council approved a payment of $5,084.19 to save Gavrau’s home from forclosure as the city explores a settlement with Gavrau for a severe fall on a city sidewalk in April. PHOTO: Khalil AlHajal/TAAN

Unable to work and unable to pay for physical therapy on her arm, which was broken in several places and remains visibly swollen, Maria Gavrau was facing foreclosure on her home of 18 years. She sued the city for $25 million after the accident led to several injuries, high medical costs and the loss of her 17-year janitorial job.
Her attorney, Rick Martin, said the $25 million was intended to get the city’s attention after, he said, it ignored an initial request for compensation.

The city then rejected a 450,000 settlement offer and last week said they had not received all the necessary medical documentation needed to evaluate the claims.

But after appeals from Gavrau and some neighbors, including Arab Americans, who were quoted in several newspaper articles, to speed up the settlement process to prevent her home from being auctioned off, and after Martin distributed flyers and attempted to speak about the issue at a Nov. 3 City Council meeting, the city wrote a check for … and an auction scheduled for Wednesday on her Calhoun Street home was called off.

“I was so happy when Mr. Martin told me,” Gavrau said. “I’m not going to lose the house now… Where was I going to go? I have no income… I could not sleep when I got the [foreclosure notice] paper on the door. And I did not sleep when I got the good news either.

“It was nice of them. I feel much better.”

The city also agreed to pay $820 for each of the next three months, acknowledging it may be liable to pay damages, saying the payments give the city time to review the medical records without the threat of Gavrau losing her home, and that the mortgage payments would be applied to any settlement reached.

“The lawyer contacted me and said that they wanted to try and save her home,” Martin said.

The city said it’s one of the most aggressive communities in replacing sidewalks, but that problems still arise.

City spokesperson Mary Laundroche said Dearborn replaces about 8,800 slabs a year out of over 200 miles of sidewalk.

The city said it resolved nine sidewalk cases in fiscal year 2008, with the settlements averaging $2,500.