A new bridge 50+ years in the making will finally be complete and open on August 3rd. The rare extradosed design and size is one of only two in the country and has taken many environmentally conscious steps including slim lines due to its location on a Nationally protected scenic St. Croix River. The Historic Tourism District of Stillwater is EXCITED because the new bridge will relieve traffic congestion downtown making the traveler experience more pleasant, help save the historic lift bridge from further damage, and bring a fantastic new amenity to downtown that all travelers will love – In a year, a new 5-mile loop trail circling both bridges over to Wisconsin and back will welcome pedestrians and bikes to excellent views. For now, you can drive across the new bridge to enjoy the beautiful design as well as valley views from this high bridge. For those walking/biking there are viewing points along the way to stop for pictures as a portion of the Loop Trail is complete. You can access the Loop Trail from downtown Stillwater, Bayport, and Oak Park Heights. Currently, the trail ends at old County Road E in Wisconsin. For more information, we encourage people to visit the St. Croix Crossing website (http://www.dot.state.mn.us/stcroixcrossing/design.html#loop) or visit the Wisconsin Loop Trail website (https://projects.511wi.gov/stcroixcrossing/). You can even take a segway tour across the new bridge!
Celebrate with us by showing downtown how much you 
❤️ it – shop, dine, segway, trolley, bike and browse your way through a more pedestrian-friendly historic district! We ❤️pedestrians! The official ribbon cutting is August 2nd. at 10am, so the new bridge will be open to cars August 3rd.
Care to learn more?
Ribbon Cutting Logistics and More Celebrations
August 2nd: The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for the new St. Croix Crossing Bridge is scheduled for Wednesday, August, 2, 2017, at 10:00 am on the Minnesota side of the new bridge. Governors and state and local officials from both Minnesota and Wisconsin will be in attendance for the one-hour ceremony, and this event is open to the public. Information about parking and shuttles can be found at: http://www.dot.state.mn.us/stcroixcrossing/events.html.
No public parking will be available at the dedication site. However, parking at nearby locations on both the Minnesota and Wisconsin sides has been identified and shuttles will be provided to get to the location of the dedication. Shuttles will begin transporting individuals to the event location from the Wisconsin side at 8 a.m. and from the Minnesota side at 8:30 a.m. They will run as needed until 9 a.m. on the Wisconsin side and until 9:30 a.m. on the Minnesota side. Shuttles will resume approximately 30 minutes after the dedication ceremony ends to return to parking locations. The last shuttle will depart approximately 60 minutes after the dedication ceremony ends. Note: The Beach Rd bridge will be closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Wed, Aug. 2 until after the ceremony ends.
Shuttle Locations:
Fury Motors (old car lot) located at the corner of Osgood Ave. and Hwy 36.
Stillwater Middle School – 523 West Marsh St. (north of Hwy 36 at Osgood/4th Street and west of Orleans)
Stillwater Area High School – 5701 Stillwater Blvd. N, Stillwater, MN 55082
Immediately following the ceremony, the City of Oak Park Heights and Town of St. Joseph invites everyone to attend an ice cream social at the Oak Park Crossing Park, 15125 60th Street North, located next to Phil’s Tara Hideaway Restaurant.
Additional events planned for that day include a brief public ceremony in Lowell Park to commemorate the Lift Bridge’s 86 years of service. Stillwater Mayor Ted Kozlowski and city leaders will host the event with Federal, state and local officials.
Starting at 6:00pm the same evening, the City of Stillwater and civic leaders are partnering to expand the already scheduled “Cruisin’ on the Croix” classic car show to a public festival billed as “Cruisin to Closure” to celebrating the closing of the historic lift bridge. “We don’t know what time MnDOT will throw up the ‘bridge closed’ sign and do the permanent traffic shift, but we’ll be downtown celebrating until they do” stated Kozlowski.
August 12: Ten days later, the City of Stillwater, Minnesota – Local Government is planning a Community Street Dance on Chestnut Street, Saturday, August 12 from 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm. The idea for the dance is a reflection to the celebration that took place in 1931 when the lift bridge opened. “We thought we should have a community celebration of the closing of the lift bridge, the highlight of this event would be a polka dance,” said Council member and Chamber Board Member Mike Polehna. The city council approved the closure of Chestnut Street from Water Street to the lift bridge for the street dance, and the use of the adjacent parking lots for food vendors and a beer tent.
http://events.discoverstillwater.com/…/lift-bridge-closing…/
Care to learn more about the project?