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City Charter and Code of Ordinances

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The City of Bloomington's Code of Ordinances contains local laws which, along with state and federal laws and regulations, shape our city and its services to keep residents safe, maintain property values, and govern private activities within the city's boundaries in a manner that balances the protection of individual rights with the promotion of the public health, safety and welfare.

The process of reviewing and incorporated changes to the City Code is called "codification." Because this process must be undertaken for each change, recent changes to the code are not immediately incorporated. Codification may take several weeks.

After Council-approved changes are incorporated into the official code document at the City Clerk's office, the online representation of the Code is updated. Because of this time lag, the City Clerk's Office provides a list of recently approved, but not yet codified, changes below.

City staff will make every effort to post such changes below within three business days of Council action. You may contact the City Clerk's Office with any questions.

New versions of the City Code will be posted as the code is updated. Use the City's E-Subscribe service to receive notifications when updates are made.

Recent changes

Ordinance 2026-03
Publication Date: February 12, 2026

City Code amendment establishing a definition for "art structure", allowing art structures to encroach into setbacks in residential and nonresidential zoning districts, allowing for a landscape requirement reduction for installation of art structures, providing a parking requirement incentive for installation of art structures, and adding murals as an exception to the window requirement in mixed use districts, thereby amending Chapter 21 of the City Code.

Staff contact
Emily Hestbech
Planning
ehestbech@bloomingtonmn.gov
952-563-4507

Ordinance 2026-02
Publication Date: February 12, 2026

The ordinance amends the City of Bloomington’s official height limits map to ensure that the City’s built form aligns with its current regulatory framework and strategic vision. It also revises standards in City Code so that building height is measured in feet and not stories, exempts roof-mounted equipment and vertical circulation that extends above the roofline from height limits, and modifies standards to regulate the height of buildings that protects adjacent low-density residential properties.

Staff contact
Thomas Ramler-Olson
Planning
tramlerolson@bloomingtonmn.gov 
952-563-8928

Ordinance 2026-01
Publication Date: February 12, 2026

An ordinance creating definitions for commercial motor vehicles and trailers, updating the allowed types of motor vehicles, including commercial motor vehicles and trailers on residential property, updating height and length standards for commercial motor vehicles and trailers, and clarifying the number of motor vehicles and trailers permitted at a residential property, thereby amending Chapter 21 of the City Code. 

Staff contact
Derly Navarro
Planning
dnavarro@bloomingtonmn.gov
952-563-8941

Ordinance 2025-61
Publication Date: December 31, 2025

The purpose of the ordinance is to amend the city code related to membership of boards and commissions, eliminating a councilmember seat on the Sustainability Commission and the potential for a seat on the Creative Placemaking Commission.  The amendment also reduced the number of seats on the Sustainability Commission from 11 to 9.

Staff contact
Jackie Doncavage
Community Outreach 
jdoncavage@bloomingotnmn.gov
952-563-4954

Ordinance 2025-59
Publication Date: December 25, 2025

Staff recommended the adoption of an ordinance to make a technical amendment to Chapter 1 of the City Code  to update references to an outdated position title in the code related to the city’s civil hearing process.  The title Associate City Attorney is no longer used at the City.  The City Code text has been generalized to read "City Attorney's office" throughout the section.

Staff contact
Melissa Manderschied
Legal
mmanders@bloomingtonmn.gov
952-563-8753

Ordinance 2025-58
Publication Date: December 25, 2025

Ordinance is for construction contracts for municipal building over $175,000 needing council approval.  The previous dollar amount was $100,000.  The contract amount now aligns with the city’s purchasing policy.

Staff contact
Tim Behrendt
Maintenance
tbehrendt@bloomingtonmn.gov
952-563-8766

Ordinance 2025-57
Publication Date: December 18, 2025

This ordinance will allow all nonresidential uses in the City to construct a detached trash enclosure on their property. The ordinance also specifies the zoning performance standards that all detached trash enclosures must meet.

Staff contact
Dakota Kastenday
Planning
dkastenday@bloomingtonmn.gov
952-563-8926

Contact Information

Contact Information

City Clerk's Office