The W Superior St reconstruction project is underway! In preparation for the redesign, Main Street Lincoln Park and the City of Duluth are conducting parking studies to assess what the current situation is like and will use that data to inform the street redesign.
With the growth of new businesses and apartment buildings in the Craft District, the demand for and concerns about parking have increased over the years. Without understanding the current state of parking, it is difficult for stakeholders to make informed decisions about whether additional parking spaces are needed or whether other less costly strategies can be implemented to manage the supply and demand instead. While considering the lasting impact the reconstruction will have, decision makers need to be intentional about who and what these spaces are for in terms of future mobility, sustainability, and economic vitality and consider how parking can be planned to help those goals.
A parking study for the district has not been done since 2002, and there has been considerable change in Lincoln Park since then. With the exciting opportunity to rebuild W Superior St, this presented a great time to collect data and finally address growing parking concerns. Since the activity in the district can vary depending on the season, it was decided that there would be one done in the winter and one in the summer.
With the help of some amazing volunteers, the winter parking study was completed on Wednesday, February 22 and Saturday, February 25! Parked cars were counted every three hours from 6am to 12am along W Superior St, First St, and Michigan St and between the avenues. A huge shout-out to the business owners and community members who helped out, including those not pictured, and especially when it was very windy and cold. Results of this study will be published soon.
For more information on the reconstruction, visit westsuperiorstreet.com.