Nelson, who works in downtown Duluth for Essentia Health, said in an email that he used to be able to park about 25 feet from the door of his workplace, and he could drive there in less than 10 minutes.

Not anymore. Although Nelson’s travel time to work still would be the envy of many big-city commuters, it has lengthened considerably. Ever since construction began on Essentia’s massive Vision Northland project, Nelson takes the bus to work. Time elapsed: anywhere from 35-40 minutes.

Always tight, parking in Duluth’s medical district has become more of a squeeze since both Essentia and St. Luke’s began construction projects this year, employees say. It has created frustrating challenges for them and — many of them point out — for residents who live and park their cars in the surrounding neighborhood.

A social media query earlier this week from the News Tribune about hospital parking issues generated more than 180 comments as of Friday afternoon, mostly from hospital employees and former employees.

“I recently left St. Luke's, and the parking was a nightmare,” Ashley Nelson wrote. “I would have to get to work at least 30 minutes early for my shift so I could circle the blocks looking for a spot. The construction and snow has made the parking even tighter, and now you can't even find a meter to park at.”

As far as new construction goes, the issue appears to be much more of an Essentia problem than a St. Luke’s problem.

St. Luke’s had a net loss of 54 employee parking spaces when construction began last spring, said Mike Boeselager, vice president of support services for the hospital, in a statement. But most of those spots were regained last week when the lower level of the new Building A parking ramp opened.

“The ramp will be for patients, but we’ll reallocate spots that were (used for) patients during construction,” he said.

At Essentia, however, new construction meant removing a parking ramp that held 480 vehicles, senior facilities director John Vidmar said in a statement. “We reset our parking for employees at that time,” he said.

What that meant, in part, was an additional remote lot. Essentia has provided a parking option at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center with a shuttle service to its campus for years, Vidmar said. Now, it also has parking for downtown employees at the Miller Hill Mall, also with a shuttle service.

Based on the social media comments, it’s not a popular option.

“I live in Superior and have to drive all the way up to the Miller Hill Mall to take the shuttle,” Caley Hawkin wrote. “I leave my house over an hour early to get to work.”

Essentia has 100 parking spaces at the DECC, Sandra Sather wrote, but those go to senior employees. The mall parking lot isn’t a good option for people who live in western or eastern neighborhoods of Duluth or in Superior, she said, and it’s particularly problematic for those who also have to bring children to and from daycare.

With about 4,000 people working downtown — including 175 at Duluth Technology Village — Essentia has 1,200 surface parking spaces, mostly within 2-3 blocks of its main buildings, Vidmar said. “Considering we have a 19-acre campus, there are quite a few parking options,” he added.

St. Luke’s, with 2,342 downtown employees, has 1,515 parking spots available, Boeselager said. There’s about a one-year wait for parking permits, he added. (Keep in mind with both hospitals, that not all downtown employees are ever working at the same time.)

“Those who don’t have permits park in the neighborhood, carpool, bike, take the bus or walk to work,” Boeselager said. “Most people who drive to work are able to park within a few blocks of campus.”

Winter conditions exacerbate the problem, hospital employees say. Most blame the city of Duluth, rather than their employers, for the way the snow is handled.

“First Street by the hospital isn't completely plowed still and at least 10 spots are taken up by snowbanks,” Drew S. Turnbull wrote.

With construction underway, Essentia’s first priority was to make sure parking was provided for patients and visitors, Vidmar said. That meant designating the green ramp for patients and providing free valet parking for patients. That service is parking as many as a thousand vehicles per week, he added.

“Employees were asked to request their preferred options, including ramp, surface lot or offsite,” Vidmar said. “Assignments were awarded based on how long our colleagues have been with the organization.”

Both Essentia and St. Luke’s are hopeful more of their employees will follow Nelson’s example and take the bus to work. An employee transportation task force was created at St. Luke’s with the goal of decreasing the number of single-occupant cars used to commute to the hospital, Boeselager said. The hospital also is collaborating with the Duluth Transit Authority on the potential of discounted fares for St. Luke’s employees.

Essentia also is working with the DTA, Vidmar said, in hopes of making bus passes “a more viable option for our staff.” Looking ahead to “Can of Worms” reconstruction over the next three years, Essentia is talking to the DTA about rapid transit buses that would make fewer stops while bringing passengers downtown and then to the medical district.

In addition, Essentia is expanding its secured bicycle storage racks to handle more bicycles and to be fat tire bike-compatible, according to Vidmar.

Essentia wants to leave on-street parking to residents, he said.