Duluth pushes 27-point plan to revitalize pandemic-stalled downtown

DULUTH — The Downtown Task Force released a report Tuesday with more than two dozen recommendations for revitalizing this pandemic-stalled neighborhood in the center of the city — ideas ranging from more attractive storefronts to addressing housing needs to clarifying the rights of panhandlers.

"Our downtown is too special to allow for any erosion of progress and growth," Mayor Emily Larson said during a new conference held in the shoe department of Minnesota Surplus and Outfitters.

The city of Duluth reported that just a fraction of the 18,000 daily downtown workers who populated the neighborhood pre-pandemic have returned. There is blight from neglected private properties. And though the number of calls for emergency services downtown has remained steady — 9,436 in 2018 versus 9,273 during the same period in 2022 — there is a perception that it is more dangerous.

Larson said she put a "stake in the ground" during her State of the City address earlier this year, when she announced the future formation of the 15-member task force, a group that includes City Councilor Roz Randorf, whose district includes downtown; Kristi Stokes, president of the Downtown Duluth council; and Shaun Floerke, president of the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation. The task force has met nine times since April.

Some of its recommendations are long-term, such as making more state-run chemical and mental health services a legislative priority. Some, such as adding another city prosecutor to the existing four, have already been addressed. Angelica Ramirez was hired this past summer.

The task force recommended clarifying panhandling expectations. Freedom of speech — including panhandling — falls under the protection of the U.S. Supreme Court. It is illegal when it is aggressive, blocks sidewalks or spills onto private property. The group also suggested strengthening coordination between government agencies and nonprofit organizations to address encampments, which are illegal on public property.

Civilis Consultants, described as "urban strategists" by Stokes, recently worked with Minnesota Surplus & Outfitters to be more intentional in its window displays and offered training so the company could manage on its own. The task force, in an effort to bring more people downtown, suggested an ongoing contract with the company — and offering financial resources to downtown business owners. Another idea was to establish neighborhood watch and block captains.

The task force suggested aggressively targeting vacant buildings and blight in addition to studying pedestrian traffic, commissioning a housing study and looking at the need for downtown parking.

Larson said she would ask the task force to meet quarterly next year to review action on the recommendations.

"I take these task forces seriously and with the intent that we will follow through and see progress," she said.