When it comes to diagnosing city traffic flow, St. Luke's has a second opinion.
The city's "other" medical district does not support an arterial street treatment that would change the flow of customers from one-way to two.
As the commercial heart of the East Hillside, St. Luke's was a concerned participant at Thursday night's session on transportation issues. The workshop was the start of a three-month effort to identify and rank needed improvements.
"We want to come up with a plan that's going to address the transportation issues for the neighborhood," said Jack Forslund, project manager with URS Corporation. "We are taking a fresh approach. ... We don't have any preconceived notions; we are going to be looking at the whole system."
He said the study would not just look at ways to move traffic but public transit, bicycle use and pedestrians. City engineer Mike Metso emphasized the importance of public involvement in developing the plan.
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About three dozen people participated, including some executives from St. Luke's. They pored over colorful high quality maps, whose flatness made the project seem plausible.
The study area slopes down from East Skyline Parkway to London Road, roughly between Sixth Avenue East and 14th Avenue East. It includes Grant School, which is expected to be closed.
With about 2,000 employees and expansion in progress, St. Luke's is concerned about any traffic flow changes, especially to East First Street. Earlier this month, the City Council was asked by the St. Mary's/Duluth Clinic Health System to open First Street to two-way traffic to accommodate its growth.
Ron Franzen, St. Luke's vice president of support services, said the St. Luke's building was designed for one-way traffic, as was the older Northland building. He said that SMDC had wanted First Street one-way from Eighth Avenue down, but the city wants it two-way all the way.
"You can understand our concern," Franzen said. "First Street works well one-way, Second Street works well one-way."
He suggested the study include input from the ambulance company serving the area. St. Luke's also favors putting in a traffic signal at 10th Avenue and London Road.
The hospital will likely support plans that make it easier for traffic to move from the top to the bottom of the district and improve access off of Highway 53. Hospital officials say it is difficult to give patients directions.
Concerns expressed by neighbors included reduced speed limits, more stop signs, bike lanes and more pedestrian signals. Several suggested eliminating one-way streets.
