Via the Minnesota Department of Transportation:
Stillwater Lift Bridge (Photo by John Davis via Wikimedia)
Even though the Stillwater Lift Bridge is not operational due to repairs underway on the lift span, the Minnesota Department of Transportation plans to close a gap in the bridge located east of the lift section on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018. This will effectively end the 2018 Stillwater Lift Bridge lift schedule for marine traffic.
The bridge’s span No. 6, two spans east of the lift span, was floated out of position and anchored parallel with the east bank of the river in late July. The span was removed to allow for repair work and repainting on the lift span. With the lift span closed, the removal was needed to provide access for river traffic to move unimpeded up and down the St. Croix River through the rest of the boating season. When the span is floated back into position, marine traffic will no longer be able to move north or south of the bridge until next spring.
The historic lift bridge, spanning the St. Croix River, is being transformed into a bicycle/pedestrian crossing. The lift bridge also will accommodate marine traffic during and after the project is complete in mid-June 2019. This conversion project is part of the St. Croix Crossing Project. The converted lift bridge will also become part of a five-mile “loop trail” system connecting the new river crossing bridge up with the historic bridge and other local trails.
With repairs to the lift span expected to be finished over the winter, the lift bridge schedule will resume in late April 2019.