Duluth, Minnesota has a new parking ramp that has been controversial. From a small motel that was losing parking space for some of its RV customers to the mayor getting angry at a medical center for not following through on its supposed agreement with the city to rent some of the space.
As I walk by the First Street Ramp (the one between 3rd and 4th Aves. E.), I wonder if those that conceived it did their homework beforehand. At one o'clock on a weekday, almost none of the metered parking on the street was in use. From what I can see, there are few cars in the ramp. A friend who has used the ramp said that there were few cars in it.
When I don't take a bus or walk to the fitness center in the medical center (SMDC - St. Mary's Duluth Clinic) I park in the Second Street Ramp which is part of SMDC's Second Street Building. Only once have I found the ramp full and I generally find a spot in the first two levels. The cost is $1.25, $1.75, and $2.00 for one, two, and three hours. The city's First Street Ramp is a flat $1.00 per hour, and it is farther away.
One SMDC employee who wrote a letter to the editor of the Duluth News Tribune complained she couldn't afford the rates the city wanted for the First Street Ramp. SMDC does run a shuttle to another city-owned ramp and lot (at the DECC - Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center). SMDC provides the shuttle and the parking free to its employees. The shuttle runs every fifteen minutes at shift changes and otherwise every thirty minutes.
A new Sheraton Hotel and condos does contract for some of the space, but a hotel that occupies a quarter block shouldn't need a ramp that occupies a half block.
My guess is that more frequent bus service throughout the city could have been provided for the cost of this ramp and would have provided just as many "jobs" for a much longer time.
Maybe the Building Trades Council has more clout than the Teamsters, the union of the bus drivers. Maybe certain politicians think changed real estate will provide more tax revenue than basic services. I bet an investigative reporter could come up with all the whys and wherefores and a better cost/benefit analysis than seemingly was done for this project.
For more of my thoughts on Duluth, see "Downtown Duluth: Pizza but no pizzazz!" The sidebar of this article lists more articles on Duluth.
