Parking Commission.

411 West First Street City of Duluth Duluth, Minnesota 55802 Minutes Parking Commission. Friday, December 1, 2023 7:30 AM Council Chambers, 3rd Floor, City Hall ROLL CALL Members Present • Antonio Davis • Mike Mayou • Branden Robinson, Vice President • Brandon Van Tassel • Robert Woods, President • Mark Bauer, Ex Officio Guests Present • Ari Eilola, Duluth Operations Manager – Interstate Parking Company • Adam Fulton, Deputy Director of Planning and Economic Development – City of Duluth • Miles Hansen, Americorps/Vista Volunteer – City of Duluth • Alex Popp, Project Engineer – City of Duluth • Craig Saari, Vice President – Duluth Tire APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approval of November 2023 meeting minutes City of Duluth Parking Services Manager Mark Bauer presented the November 2023 Duluth Parking Commission meeting minutes for approval. Commission Vice President Branden Robinson motioned that the minutes be approved as presented. Commissioner Brandon Van Tassel seconded the motion, which was approved 4-0 (Commissioner Antonio Davis had not yet arrived). ON-STREET ACCESSIBLE PARKING ZONE REQUESTS On-street accessible parking zone requests Mr. Bauer presented four on-street accessible parking zone requests for approval. He stated that he had visited the sites and consulted with the applicants. He noted that the request for 206 East House Street had previously been approved by the Commission but that the original associated application form had contained errors that were pertinent to Mr. Bauer’s site review. Mr. Bauer stated that he had re-surveyed the property and adjusted the comments accordingly, again recommending approval. Commissioner Robinson motioned that the request for 208 East 6th Street be approved. Commissioner Mike Mayou seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. Commissioner Mayou motioned that the request for 3917 West 2nd Street be approved. Commissioner Robinson seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. Commissioner Van Tassel motioned that the request for 21 North 25th Avenue West be approved. City of Duluth Page 1 Parking Commission. Minutes December 1, 2023 Commissioner Davis seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. Commissioner Robinson motioned that the updated request for 206 East House Street be approved. Commissioner Van Tassel seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. Commissioner Mayou suggested that an online application process for the accessible zones be made available to the public. Mr. Bauer stated that he would investigate this possibility. PRESENTATION ON WEST SUPERIOR STREET REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT Presentation on West Superior Street redevelopment project Mr. Bauer introduced the topic of the upcoming redevelopment of West Superior Street in Lincoln Park. Project Engineer Alex Popp provided a presentation on the project, noting various items such as additional greenspace, a new protected bicycle lane, and sidewalk amenities space. He noted that the proposal featured a substantial loss of public on-street parking and that there had been negative feedback from the community regarding that, but he also noted that there was a substantial amount of support for the proposed design. Mr. Popp stated that all feedback would be included in an upcoming presentation to the Duluth City Council. He stated that while there was hopeful that additional private off-street parking would be developed in the area, there were currently no plans in place. Commissioner Mayou inquired whether any follow-up had been conducted to gather feedback from the many public survey recipients who had not responded. Mr. Popp stated that no additional work was performed to gather this feedback. Duluth Tire Vice President Craig Saari stated that he had concerns with the proposed design but was in communication with Mr. Popp on these. Commissioner Robinson stated that the project engineers should take a more comprehensive approach to the design, balancing the proposal with the upcoming changes to the City’s Unified Development Chapter in Municipal Code that would eliminate off-street parking requirements for new developments and place further parking pressure on the area. Commissioner Robinson motioned that the proposal be tabled to allow more time for the Commission and City to consider the topic and more comprehensively and thoroughly address the concerns. Commissioner Van Tassel seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. PROPOSAL TO RECONFIGURE PARKING ON A PORTION OF WEST MICHIGAN STREET Proposal to reconfigure parking on a portion of West Michigan Street Mr. Bauer presented a proposal to reconfigure parking on West Michigan Street from 23rd Avenue West to 26th Avenue West, as well as to reaffirm many of the existing configurations in the area. He stated that the upper/odd side of the street featured a No Parking 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. November through May configuration and that he recommended retaining it, with a refreshment of the existing signage. He stated that the lower/even side of the street featured a No Stopping/Standing configuration, with the exception of the 2500 block, which featured signage that seemed to imply that parking was allowed there. Mr. Bauer stated that the Duluth Transit Authority had expressed concern that vehicles parked in the area impeded the safe passage and turning of City busses. Mr. Bauer recommended that the entire lower side be converted to No City of Duluth Page 2 Parking Commission. Minutes December 1, 2023 Stopping/Standing. Commissioner Robinson motioned that the proposal be approved. Commissioner Mayou seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. 2024 DULUTH PARKING COMMISSION MEETING SCHEDULE PROPOSAL 2024 Duluth Parking Commission meeting schedule proposal Mr. Bauer presented the proposed 2024 Duluth Parking Commission meeting schedule for approval. He noted that each date was the first Friday of each calendar month, at 7:30 a.m. at Council Chambers in Duluth City Hall. Commission President Robert Woods motioned that the proposed schedule be approved. Commissioner Robinson seconded the motion, which was approved 5-0. OFF-STREET PARKING UPDATE Off-street parking update Mr. Bauer stated that there had been a predicted seasonal increase in reported incidents at the public parking facilities, with the exception of Technology Village Ramp, which seemed to have a very low number of incidents. He stated that he would update the Commission more thoroughly in the January meeting. He stated that, after discussion with the City’s Finance team, he did not recommend any adjustment to the budgeted General Fund transfer amount from the Parking Fund for 2024, due to the potential negative impacts this would have on the already-completed City budget as a whole. Mr. Bauer stated that his recommendation was contingent on the Finance team’s assurance that justification and a detailed explanation for the annual transfer amount would be provided to the Commission in early 2024. ON-STREET PARKING UPDATE On-street parking update Mr. Bauer stated that there were no significant updates regarding on-street parking. PUBLIC COMMENTS Public comments follow-up There were no public comments in the follow-up comments period. City of Duluth Page 3