Bloomington, MN Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)

Bloomington's construction hours are in § 10.29.07(c) of the City Code, part of the Operational Limits section of the Noise Code. No person shall engage in, permit or allow construction activities involving the use of power equipment on Sundays or at any time other than 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on weekdays and 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Saturdays.

The reach is wide. The subsection names any kind of electric-, diesel- or gas-powered machine, so a contractor cannot escape it by switching fuel. The words engage in, permit or allow also reach a property owner or general contractor who lets a crew run equipment out of hours, not only the operator of the machine.

Sunday is a flat bar on power-equipment construction. The subsection lists no Sunday hours at all, unlike Saturday, which starts two hours later than a weekday and ends an hour earlier.

There is a performance exemption. Construction activities that can meet the requirements outlined in § 10.29.02(a) and (b), the Noise Area Classification standards table and the classification list, are exempt from the operating limits of subsection (c). That means a quiet operation measured against the L50 and L10 limits for the receiving land use is not held to the clock.

Emergency work is exempt under § 10.29.07(e). Immediate work needed to restore property to a safe condition, or to protect persons or property from exposure to danger, such as removing snow or trees following severe weather, is exempt from operational limits. Section 10.31(a) separately exempts emergency work such as utility maintenance and tree removal after weather events.

A builder who needs to work outside the hours can apply under § 10.31(b) to the Community Development Director. The application lists the dates requested, the location and times of operation, the equipment involved, the necessity, steps taken to minimize noise, and contact details for the responsible persons and the property owner. A Type I permit is a temporary exception decided by the Director or designee, and a Type II permit is an ongoing conditional exception decided by the City Council at a public hearing, with a Noise Impact Statement and the fee listed in City Code Appendix A.