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• Lawmakers ask state Minnesota AG to aid against Stillwater Bridge suit
• New Richmond baseball wins in return to spring ball

By Mark Brouwer, RiverTown Staff

Two Stillwater, Minn., area state legislators are asking Minnesota's chief legal officer to throw her weight behind the St. Croix River Bridge project.

On Thursday, April 3, Rep. Matt Dean (R-Dellwood) and Sen. Ray Vandeveer (R-Forest Lake) announced that they sent a letter to Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, asking her to file a brief in U.S. District court declaring support for the Federal Highway Administration in a lawsuit against the project.

"The purpose of the letter is to ask the Minnesota State Attorney to join the defendants as a friend of the court," Dean said in a recent interview. "We're hoping to get her support in opposing this lawsuit, which we think is wasteful and frivolous and should be dismissed as soon as possible."

Last June, the Sierra Club sued the federal agency, as well as the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Park Service, in hopes of halting the project, which would include the construction of a four-lane, $582 million bridge over the St. Croix River between Oak Park Heights, Minn., and Houlton and allow the Stillwater Lift Bridge to remain as a bicycle and pedestrian crossing.

Sierra Club representatives maintain that the project violates the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act that protects the river. A federal judge is deciding whether to allow the case to continue.

"I can't imagine the Attorney General would intervene in this case, because no other process will address the environmental issues" the project involves, said Mat Hollinshead, transportation chair for the Sierra Club North Star Chapter.

A representative from the attorney general's office was not immediately available for comment.

The New Richmond baseball team was victorious in its return to WIAA spring baseball.

The Tigers haven't played a WIAA spring game since 1981. When they made their debut in the 2008 spring season, they were able to win at Durand by a 10-3 score on Wednesday.

Senior Cody Torkelson earned the pitching win for the Tigers, working the first six innings. Torkelson was injured the next inning when he was struck in the eye with a pitch while batting.

Senior Hayden Zimmerman led the Tiger offense by going 3-4 at the plate. He drove home three runs, including smacking a solo homer to lead off the fourth inning.