Anoka County, MN Drone Rules: Park Drone Restrictions (2026)

Chapter IV, Section 5 of the Amended and Restated Park Ordinance No. 2018-1 makes it unlawful to use county park property as a starting or landing field, or to fly an aircraft, hot air balloon, parachute, hang glider, unmanned aerial vehicle (drone), or other flying apparatus there, unless the Director or designee has authorized it by Permit. The ordinance defines an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, or UAV, as an aircraft without a human pilot aboard that is operated by a ground-based or programmed controller, a definition broad enough to reach hobbyist quadcopters as well as commercial mapping drones.

Because the ban covers using the park as a takeoff or landing site, it reaches a pilot who launches from outside the park boundary and merely overflies county land, not only someone standing inside the park to fly. A Permit application goes to the Parks Department under the general special-use Permit process, which lets the Director set conditions such as time, location, and insurance before approving any aerial activity. Anoka County Sheriff's deputies, local police, and Park Services Manager staff enforce the section, and they can eject a pilot on the spot for flying without authorization under Chapter VIII, Section 1.