Coon Rapids, MN Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

Coon Rapids defines composting in Section 8-1601 as any aboveground microbial process that turns organic matter into a usable soil amendment or mulch, and Section 8-1602 requires it to happen inside an enclosed container built of sturdy woven wire fencing, rot-resistant wood, or a commercially produced compost bin. The container's volume is capped at 100 cubic feet on lots smaller than 10,000 square feet and 150 cubic feet on larger lots. Placement is controlled by Section 8-1603: the bin must sit at least 10 feet from any property line and at least 50 feet from a habitable building other than the resident's own home, and it must be entirely within the rear yard as defined in Chapter 11-201, with corner lots keeping the bin at least 20 feet from any street right-of-way.

Properties with shoreline on the Mississippi River or Crooked Lake get one exception: they may keep a compost container in the front yard as long as it stays outside the front-yard setback. Section 8-1604 limits what can go in the bin to grass clippings, leaves, weeds that have not gone to seed, non-diseased plant trimmings under one-quarter inch in diameter, straw, sawdust, wood ashes, fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, egg shells, and other commercially available compost ingredients. Section 8-1605 then bans meat, bones, oils, grease, dairy products, whole branches or logs, plastic or synthetic fibers, human or animal waste, heavily diseased plants, and any other garbage, steering the rule toward yard waste and food scraps rather than a general trash pile. The Chapter was adopted by Ordinance 2102 on April 16, 2013.