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Cook County highway department reports lower reserves, new projects and rising material costs
Summary
Cook County Highway Department told the Board of Commissioners on June 24 that fund balances fell after two recent construction projects, that bridge and road work continues, and that rising material costs have prompted a new calcium chloride policy and higher equipment reserves for undelivered trucks.
The Cook County Highway Department presented its 2024 activity and financial report to the Cook County Board of Commissioners on June 24, outlining staffing changes, a portfolio of bridge and road projects and a decline in unallocated reserves tied to recent capital work.
The department told commissioners that cash on hand at year end was about $2.9 million, a $395,060.98 decrease from 2023 driven largely by a 41% local match on the new highway storage facility and continued spending on the Grand Portage projects. Department staff said the storage facility’s cost increased from an estimated $2.5 million to $2.9 million after a negotiated change order.
Bridge work and grant-funded projects were a central focus: staff reported 14 active bridge projects and said the department remains on track to address structurally deficient bridges by the end of 2027. The presentation noted $7.3 million in construction closed out from 2023 and a $5.4 million collaborative Fifth Avenue West project with the Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District and the City of Grand Marais.
Officials also warned that the department’s apparent fund-balance improvement is affected by large held reserves for equipment that have not yet been delivered. The county is carrying roughly $620,599.09 in reserves for tandem-axle truck orders placed in 2023–24; those payments will be spent when the trucks are delivered. The department said that, excluding inventory and these equipment reserves, the fund balance would be lower than the headline figure reported to the board.
Rising material costs were another theme. Staff said calcium chloride—used for dust control and road stabilization—has increased by more than 50 cents per gallon since 2020, and the county has adopted a calcium chloride policy to target where and how much is applied. Gravel rose from $7.35 to $8.25 per cubic yard, and winter salt and sand each rose by about $3–4 per yard; department staff said those increases have tightened the maintenance budget.
Looking ahead, staff previewed a $12 million Mill The Hill project planned for 2025. Of that total, roughly $1.6 million is state-aid money that can be paid up to 95% up front, but most other reimbursements are reimbursement-based and may take 45–60 days after submittal, the department said—making available reserves critical to cash flow during large projects.
The department also reviewed staffing: three maintenance-worker hires and conversions of positions; updates to snow-removal, sign and calcium chloride policies; and adoption of a cloud-based fleet maintenance tracking system to replace paper records.
The full highway report is available on the Highway Department web page under Documents and Reports, the department said.
