 As 2017 comes to a close, the Crow Wing County Highway Department is taking a look back at their progress during the last year. Our Sarah Winkleman talked with the county engineer about the final numbers. It was a pretty standard year for construction on the county roads, with just a little larger of a budget. Our first full year with the local option sales tax, so we've seen a lot and the revenue from that has allowed us to do a number more projects than we have, so we're kind of on an uptick with construction projects. It was a busy year for the Crow Wing County Highway Department as they paved nearly 48 miles of road costing $11.5 million. In addition to that, 20 miles of seal coating was put into place throughout the county. Just a really thin layer of rock that's held together with batuminous glue, so to speak, and it really helps a little bit on the ride and keep the road free of water that infiltrates. With the largest chunk of 120 miles under construction for smaller surface maintenance and crack sealing. In general, the construction season went as good as it could go, with the only challenge being lots and lots of rain. We got a lot of calls about beavers and water and places where it hadn't been in 40 or 50 years. And now with the snow plowing season underway since October, the county is on track to see a similar snow removal cost to last season. We had spent $1.2 million on snow removal, which is a pretty significant number, but that equals about $46 per household in Crow Wing County. We have about $26,000 households, and we feel that that's a lot of really good value. So far in the 2017-2018 snow season, the cost per Crow Wing County household is currently at $14. We've had a lot of what we call nuisance snows. Nothing really significant, probably three inches is the max. And those are those are a little bit tougher to deal with. But overall, the department is pleased with 2017 and ready to tackle many new projects for 2018. Reporting in Brainerd, Sarah Winkelman, Lakeland News. The Highway Department plans to pave another 40 to 50 miles in the 2018 construction season. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.