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Christmas City of the North Parade Traffic Advisory

On Friday, November 18th, the Christmas City of the North Parade will take place in Downtown Duluth.  The parade starts at 6:30 p.m. in front of Fitger’s at 6th Ave E and Superior St and continues along Superior Street to 4th Ave W.

Parade units will begin lining up at 4:00 p.m. on London Rd between 10th and 14th Avenues E, and buses will be staging on the upper side of London Road from 14th to 17th Avenues E. 

Marching bands and dance groups will exit the parade route at 4th Ave W to buses waiting on Michigan St.  Floats will dismantle in the 400 block of West Superior St and exit the area at 5th Ave W.

ROAD CLOSURES:

At 4:00 p.m., London Rd will close to traffic from 10th to 14th Avenues E for parade line-up.  Sections of 12th and 13th Avenues E and the 1300 block of Jefferson St will also close for parade line-up.

Superior St from 8th Ave E to 12th Ave E will close to traffic at 5:30 p.m., and Superior St from 8th Ave E to 5th Ave W will close to traffic at 5:45 p.m.

Michigan Street will close at 6:15 p.m. to all traffic, except for buses and local residents.  Vehicles exiting Michigan St lots and ramps during the closures will be directed to exit the area by driving south to the 5th Ave W Off-Ramp.

Due to construction this year, vehicles will not be allowed to enter the Fitger’s Ramp and Pickwick parking lots after Superior St closes at 5:45 p.m.  Vehicles will be allowed to exit these lots until 6:30 p.m.  After 6:30 p.m., vehicles parked in the Fitger’s Ramp and Pickwick lots will not be allowed to exit until the parade ends.

Downtown traffic should return to normal by approximately 8:30 p.m.

NO PARKING AREAS: 

Motorists should be aware of the following no parking areas in Downtown Duluth and along London Rd.  Vehicles parked in these areas will be tagged and towed.

No Parking after 10:00 a.m. at posted meters in front of the Pickwick Restaurant.

No Parking after 12:00 noon at meters on the upper side of Superior St near Fitger's.

No Parking after 3:00 p.m. on:

Both sides of London Rd, from 10th Ave E to 14th Ave E,

                      The upper side of London Rd, from 14th Ave E to 17th Ave E,

                      12th and 13th Avenues E, from London Rd to Superior St,

                      Jefferson St, from 13th Ave E to 14th Ave E, and

                      The Rose Garden Parking Lot.

No Parking after 4:00 p.m. on Michigan St from 5th Ave W to 4th Ave W

No Parking after 5:00 p.m. on Superior St from 10th Ave E to 5th Ave W                                

DTA ROUTING:

DTA buses will use 1st Street between 5th Ave W and 3rd Ave E for all routes.

JEFFERSON BUS LINES:

Jefferson Line Buses will have access to the Duluth Transportation Center on Michigan St to load and unload passengers.

DETOURS:

Eastbound Superior St traffic will be detoured at 6th Ave W to eastbound 2nd St.  Westbound Superior St traffic will be detoured from London Rd at 14th Ave E and from Superior St at 12th Ave E to westbound 3rd St.  Tenth Ave E will close to traffic from 1st St to Superior St.

I-35, DECC, and CANAL PARK ACCESS:

Lake Ave will close between 1st St and the Interstate-35 ramps on the Lake Ave Viaduct at 5:45 p.m.  All Interstate-35 ramps at Lake Ave will remain open during the parade, but will only be accessible from the Canal Park side.

Access to Canal Park, Park Point, and the DECC, will be via southbound 5th Ave W to Railroad St.  All Interstate-35 ramps at 5th Ave W will remain open.

ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL ACCESS:

If approaching from the east, use available routes along 3rd St or 1st St to access 10th Ave E to arrive at the St. Luke’s Emergency Department located between 10th and 11th Ave E on 2nd St.   

If approaching from the west, use available routes along 2nd St and 4th St to access 10th Ave E to arrive at the St. Luke’s Emergency Department located between 10th and 11th Ave E on 2nd St.  

St. Luke’s Hospital parking is available along the street and in the parking ramp on the lower side of 1st St, between 10th and 12th Avenues E.  St. Luke’s employees should be aware of no parking restrictions starting at 3:00 p.m. on and near London Rd.

SUGGESTED PARADE PARKING:

For the convenience of the thousands of people who converge on Downtown Duluth for this annual event, the following parking ramps will offer free parking after 5:00 p.m. Friday:

•           Fourth Avenue Auto Park—402 W Michigan St

•           Duluth Transportation Center—228 W Michigan St

•           Civic Center Ramp—410 W 1st St

•           Tech Village Ramp—10 E 1st St

•           HART Ramp—122 E 1st Superior St

•           Medical District Ramp—302 E 1st St

•           Fitger’s---600 E Superior St

•           Phoenix Parking Lot---98 N 4th Ave W

•           St. Luke's Hospital Ramp—1020 E 1st St

•           St. Luke’s Employee Parking Lot—119 N 12th Ave E

Entrance to the Michigan St ramps will be limited after 6:15 p.m., but vehicles will be able to exit them throughout the parade.

Downtown parking meters will be free after 5:30 p.m., but there is no parking along the parade route on Superior St.   

Drivers should remain alert to pedestrian and parade traffic, be aware of no parking signs, and use caution when driving in the area of this event.

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