Duluth Parking Meter Rate Hike Hits Duluth’s Medical Dist. Months Late, Concerns St. Luke’s

St. Luke's calls the increase a "significant financial burden on our staff."

DULUTH, Minn. — St. Luke’s spoke out Tuesday about a recent rate increase to about 400 parking meters within the Medical District in downtown Duluth. But city officials told FOX 21’s Dan Hanger, the increase was actually supposed to happen months ago in January when a city wide increase took effect after 13 years of that rate standing still.

A recent audit pinpointed the Medical District still at the previous rate set in 2008 at 75 cents an hour instead of 2022’s rate of $1.50 an hour.

The city contacted the app vendor for DuluthParking.com to make the correction, which is when some hospital employees told FOX 21 they were shocked at the change in price at roughly $12 for eight hours on the meter.

Meanwhile, a St. Luke’s spokesperson said the meter rate its employees have been paying before the hike has actually been “$3 for eight hours or $0.38/hour and not $.075/hour.”

St. Luke’s released the following statement Tuesday:

 “St. Luke’s has reached out to city leaders regarding the 400% increase in the rate for metered parking near our campus. This is a significant financial burden on our staff and will worsen the workforce challenge that we have been experiencing. St. Luke’s is actively developing additional options for parking including a new lot this year and a new ramp in the next. We are hopeful that the city will consider delaying this increase until our new resources are available to our staff.”

The city said the increase was needed to maintain the meter system and staff while being at a competitive rate that’s more appropriate for the market.

The city’s goal with parking meters is not long-term parking, but instead designed to encouraged movement for a balance among hospital employees, patients, visitors, residents and businesses in and around the Medical District.

The Duluth Parking Commission approved the rate increase last October.

The city said the council does not have to vote on meter increases.

In 2021, the city took in roughly $463,000 through its 1,600 metered spots.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Essentia Health said the rate is not affecting its employees because, “A lot of the meters around our facilities are two-hour meters, so not a lot of people use them for extended periods of time.”

*This article was updated Wednesday afternoon to reflect what St. Luke’s says its employees have been paying at the meter before the increase, which is different from the city’s number.  It also adds a statement from Essentia.