Closed for 3 Years, Historic Stillwater Lift Bridge Now Open

STILLWATER -- This summer you can do something in Stillwater that you haven't been able to do in three years, cross the historic lift bridge.

Christie Rosckes is the Marketing Director at Discover Stillwater. She says the bridge opened on June 1st.

What they were doing was they were converting it from a highway to a pedestrian trail, so it's now part of a five-mile loop that takes you over the St. Croix River to Wisconsin and loops you over a new bridge that was built a few years ago and then back to downtown Stillwater.

Rosckes says most of the tourist attractions are opening up this week including the riverboat cruises, the gondolas, and the historic trolley tours.

She says also new this year are walking historic tours.

Bars, restaurants and patios are open and ready for business in Stillwater.  She says they are a foodie destination with about 30 restaurants in just the downtown.

We were already a place that had a lot of outdoor patios, so rooftops and decks and patios, but it's even better this year with some extra little parklets and alleyways that have now been converted into outdoor dining spaces.  So it really gives you this sort of European feel.

Rosckes says the speakeasy The Velveteen has added a new outdoor space for this summer.

While most of Stillwater is open and ready for tourists some of the city's largest events like Lumberjack Days and the 4th of July Fireworks have been canceled.

This has been "Staycation Week" on the News @ Noon show, each day this week we've talked to tourism leaders in various regional cities to see what they have to offer this summer for a weekend getaway.