Stearns County, MN Parking Rules: Driveway Rules (2026)

1 of the Land Use and Zoning Ordinance requires a driveway access permit from the Stearns County Public Works Director for any new, revised, or changed-use access onto a county road, subject to the access and corridor protection guidelines in the county's Comprehensive Plan; the Public Works Director decides the location, size, and design of the access and can limit how many accesses a parcel gets in the interest of safety and traffic flow. 1 makes it a precedent step. 3 requires township board approval for accesses onto township roads where the township requires it.

4 then sets a numeric standard: the minimum driveway width, for purposes of calculating impervious lot coverage under the ordinance's lot-coverage limits, is nine feet. Because driveway square footage counts toward a parcel's impervious surface cap, a wider driveway than the code minimum can push a lot closer to, or over, its allowed coverage percentage, so the width figure has consequences beyond the driveway itself.