Stearns County, MN Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing sections
- Ordinance 392, §§ 4.1(J) and 4.2(P)
- Vehicle count limit
- Set in Ordinance 209, § 7.13.8
- Owner removal window
- Up to 10 days after notice
- County removal cost
- Billed to owner, tax-assessed if unpaid
- Maximum penalty
- $1,000 fine or 90 days jail
- Applies to
- Townships and unincorporated area only
Summary
Stearns County declares unlicensed or inoperative vehicles stored beyond the zoning-code limit, plus unsheltered junked cars, trucks, RVs and farm equipment, a public nuisance. The Environmental Services Department can force removal or have the County tow and bill the owner.
Any unlicensed and/or inoperative motor vehicle stored on property in excess of that authorized by Section 7.13.8 of Stearns County Ordinance Number 209; or successor ordinance, and the unsheltered storage of unused, inoperative, stripped, junked automobiles, trucks, buses, recreational vehicles, farm implements, manufactured homes, motorcycles, snowmobiles, watercraft or other machinery, equipment and personal property of any kind which, in the judgment of the Department, is no longer safely usable for the purposes for which it was manufactured; and
Full Breakdown
Ordinance Number 392 targets abandoned and junked vehicles in two overlapping provisions. 8 of Stearns County Ordinance Number 209' a public nuisance affecting health, tying the vehicle count directly to the storage limit set in the County's zoning ordinance (Ordinance 209). 2(P) restates and expands the rule as a nuisance affecting peace and safety, covering not just cars in excess of the zoning limit but the unsheltered storage of unused, inoperative, stripped or junked automobiles, trucks, buses, recreational vehicles, farm implements, manufactured homes, motorcycles, snowmobiles and watercraft that the Environmental Services Department judges no longer safely usable for their manufactured purpose.
8 of the zoning ordinance for the exact number of unlicensed vehicles allowed before storage becomes a violation. 4). As with the rest of Ordinance 392, this authority runs only in townships and unincorporated Stearns County; a junked car inside St. Cloud, Sartell or another city is regulated under that city's own vehicle-storage rules.
Violations & Fines
Keeping an unlicensed or inoperative vehicle beyond the allowed limit, or storing junked vehicles unsheltered, is a misdemeanor under Section 6.1 once an abatement notice is ignored: fines up to $1,000, up to 90 days in jail, or both, with each day treated as a separate offense. The County can also remove the vehicle itself and assess the cost against the property (Sections 5.1, 5.3, 5.4).
Frequently Asked Questions
How many unlicensed vehicles can I keep on my Stearns County property?
Does a junked RV or farm implement count, not just cars?
What happens if I ignore a vehicle abatement notice?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Stearns County
Compare Stearns County to another location·View the Minnesota parking rules overview
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