The Stillwater Lift Bridge, closed since June 23 because of flooding, will reopen Wednesday at 4 p.m., according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

The bridge will resume its normal lift schedule Friday evening after July 4th fireworks in downtown Stillwater.

The two-lane bridge, which connects Minnesota Hwy. 36 and Wisconsin Hwy. 64, closed after the St. Croix River rose to 686 feet above sea level. By this coming weekend, the river level will have fallen about 4 feet from last weekend's crest. On Tuesday, the river was at 686.5 feet, about a half a foot below minor flood stage.

The Lift Bridge will remain in the down position at 10:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Friday, MnDOT said, to accommodate the anticipated increase in traffic after July 4th celebrations. The 10 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. lifts will take place as scheduled.

Visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/liftbridge/index.html for more information about the Lift Bridge and to view a 2014 schedule.

Kevin Giles