Minnetonka, MN Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

The Minnetonka City Council defines "lot coverage" in Section 300.02 as the portion of a lot, excluding any area below the ordinary high water level of a lake or creek, that is covered by buildings, driveways, parking areas and any other impervious surface. The limit itself is set district by district in Chapter 3, the zoning regulations.

The tightest numbers sit in the shoreland district, Section 300.25, subdivision 7. The same two caps apply in all three classifications (General Development, Recreational Development Creeks and Tributary): 30 percent impervious surface on the portion of a lot within 150 feet of the ordinary high water level, and 75 percent on the portion beyond 150 feet. The cap is measured on the two bands separately, not as one figure for the whole parcel. The code also lets the city credit pervious hard surfaces such as pavers or pervious concrete to the extent of their proven infiltration rate. Its own example is a 100 square foot paver area that infiltrates 14 percent, which lets up to 14 square feet come off the impervious total.

Outside the shoreland overlay, the business and industrial districts use a flat ceiling. Sections 300.17 (B-1 Office Business), 300.18 (B-2 Limited Business), 300.19 (B-3 General Business) and 300.20 (I-1 Industrial) each set maximum lot coverage at 85 percent, counting building footprints, parking areas, driveways, loading, storage and trash areas and other impervious surfaces. Those districts pair the cap with a floor area ratio of 1.0 in B-1, 0.8 in B-2, 1.5 in B-3 and 1.0 in I-1.

Some residential and institutional rules carry their own caps. The R-2 specific district standards in Section 300.11 list a maximum impervious surface of 50 percent with a maximum floor area ratio of 0.25. The conditional use standards in Section 300.16 limit educational institutions to 60 percent of the site and religious institutions to 70 percent, with the remainder suitably landscaped.