They just don't build bridges like they used to. Or at least they can't in the case of the bridge that will connect towns in Minnesota and Wisconsin across the St. Croix River. It is a rare instance when state departments of transportation share the final determination of bridge placement and design, and it's all due to a complex process involving litigation, mediation, and, ultimately, the realization on the part of 28 stakeholders that they all have to work together. At the center of the issue is an existing span across the federally designated Wild and Scenic River, a lift bridge in which one section is raised to allow boats to pass beneath. Not only is the historic, two-lane bridge in need of repair, when the lift section is up it causes significant traffic backups on both ends of the bridge.
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