Minnetonka, MN Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Sit-Lie Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Minnetonka City Code § 1020.015
- Prohibited conduct
- Loiter, stand, sit or lie so as to unreasonably block passage
- Warning requirement
- Officer must inform the person and ask them to move
- Posted no-loitering signs
- Longer than 10 minutes (§ 1020.020)
- Penalty
- Misdemeanor under § 1310.010 (§ 1020.025)
Summary
In the City of Minnetonka, Hennepin County, Minnesota, Section 1020.015 bars a person from loitering, standing, sitting or lying on public property, sidewalks, streets, crosswalks, parking lots, or malls so as to unreasonably block free passage. A police officer must first tell the person the act violates the ordinance and ask them to move.
A person must not loiter, stand, sit or lie in or upon any public property, private sidewalk, street, curb, crosswalk, walkway area, parking lot, mall, or other portion of private property open for public use, so as to unreasonably block, obstruct, or hinder free passage of the public. Also, a person must not unreasonably block, obstruct, or hinder free access to the entrance of a building or part of a building open to the public without consent of the owner or occupant. A person may not be arrested or convicted under this provision until after a police officer has informed the person that his/her action violates this ordinance and has asked the person to move to a location, if one is available, that would not violate this ordinance.
Full Breakdown
Minnetonka has no stand-alone sit-lie ordinance. The rule lives in Section 1020.015 of the Minnetonka City Code, titled Loitering: Obstructing Public Passage, and it turns on obstruction rather than on who is sitting. The list of places is broad: any public property, private sidewalk, street, curb, crosswalk, walkway area, parking lot, mall, or other portion of private property open for public use. The prohibited conduct is to loiter, stand, sit or lie there so as to unreasonably block, obstruct, or hinder free passage of the public.
A second sentence protects building access: a person must not unreasonably block, obstruct, or hinder free access to the entrance of a building or part of a building open to the public without consent of the owner or occupant. The section does not mention homelessness, camping, or sleeping. It builds in a warning step. A person cannot be arrested or convicted until after a police officer has informed the person that his or her action violates the ordinance and has asked the person to move to a location, if one is available, that would not violate the ordinance.
That wording means the officer's request and the availability of another location both matter. A separate rule in Section 1020.020 applies where a sign prohibiting loitering has been posted: no one can loiter, stand, sit or lie there for longer than 10 minutes. The Minnetonka Police Department enforces Section 1020, and the Minnetonka City Council placed the penalty for every provision of the section in Section 1020.025.
Violations & Fines
Section 1020.025 makes a violation of any provision of Section 1020 a misdemeanor, punishable in accordance with Section 1310.010. Under that section the sentence follows state law, a violation continuing across calendar days counts as a separate offense for each day, and the city attorney can also go to court to restrain or abate a violation. The warning and request to move required by Section 1020.015 must come before any arrest or conviction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to sit on a sidewalk in the City of Minnetonka?
Does a Minnetonka officer have to give a warning first?
Does the rule cover building entrances?
What is the penalty for violating the sit-lie rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Minnetonka
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