Business Licensing & Operations in Bloomington, IN (2026)
5 verified business licensing & operations rules for Bloomington, Indiana, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
In the City of Bloomington, a sexually oriented business cannot locate within five hundred feet of a place of worship, school, day care center, park, library, homeless shelter, another sexually oriented business, or any residential zoning district, under the Unified Development Ordinance's use-specific spacing standard.
Bloomington Sexually Oriented Business Spacing
Significant RestrictionsBloomington Municipal Code § 20.03.030(d)(7)(B)
(B)Location. A sexually oriented business shall not be located on a property within five hundred feet (measured from the nearest property line of the property from which spacing is required to the nearest wall of the building or tenant space that houses the sexually oriented business use using a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or public rights-of-way) of any of the follo...
Secondhand Dealers
Anyone who buys, sells or trades used goods for business purposes in the City of Bloomington must first get a license from the city controller under Bloomington Municipal Code § 4.20.010, though the chapter carves out garage and estate sales, thrift and antique stores, and dealers who mainly trade clothes, cars, books, watercraft, farm equipment, CDs or LPs.
Secondhand Dealer License in Bloomington
Some RestrictionsBloomington Municipal Code § 4.20.010
4.20.010 - License—Required. Any person or corporation who desires to engage in buying, selling, trading or otherwise acquiring or purchasing used goods, items and merchandise for business purposes in the city shall first procure a license to do so from the office of the city controller. No license shall be required if the person or corporation is primarily engaged in the business of buying, se...
Pawnbrokers
Anyone who wants to operate as a pawnbroker in the City of Bloomington must first get a license from the city controller under Bloomington Municipal Code § 4.18.020, on top of the state pawnbroker's license the Indiana Department of Financial Institutions already requires, and must agree to surrender merchandise a law-enforcement officer has probable cause to believe is stolen.
Pawnbroker License in the City of Bloomington
Some RestrictionsBloomington Municipal Code § 4.18.020
4.18.020 - Application for license. (a)No person, partnership, association or corporation shall engage or continue in business as a pawnbroker except as authorized by this chapter and without first obtaining a license from the city controller. Application for such license shall be in writing and shall state the full name and place of residence of the applicant, or if the applicant is a partners...
Auto Repair on Residential Property
In the City of Bloomington, residents may repair a vehicle they own in their own parking area as long as no business is conducted and the activity is reasonable and customary, but no more than three wrecked or inoperable vehicles may sit on site, none longer than thirty days, under Bloomington Municipal Code Section 20.04.060(n)(3).
Bloomington Home Motor Vehicle Repair Limits
Light RestrictionsBloomington Municipal Code § 20.04.060(n)(3)
(3)Motor Vehicle Repair.(A)Motor vehicle repair work in parking areas shall be permitted in residential districts, provided that the vehicle under repair is owned by the occupant of the residential property; the frequency, duration, and scope of such use is reasonable and customary as accessory to the residential use; and no business is being conducted in conjunction with such repair use.(B)Mot...
Towing Companies
In the City of Bloomington, a towing company cannot perform a non-consensual tow, one requested by a parking lot owner without the vehicle owner's consent, without a non-consensual tow business license from the city, issued under Bloomington Municipal Code Chapter 4.32. The $350 annual license requires insurance, a background check, and compliance with signage, fee caps, and record-keeping rules enforced by the license administrator in the department of economic and sustainable development.
Bloomington non-consensual towing license rules
Significant RestrictionsBloomington Municipal Code §§ 4.32.040, 4.32.070
It shall be unlawful for a towing company to perform a non-consensual tow originating within the city without first having obtained a valid non-consensual tow business license issued by the city pursuant to this chapter. Provided, however, where a tow does not originate within the city and where a tow truck business is merely transporting a vehicle through the city, that towing company shall be...