Blaine, MN Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

Before installing solar panels, the City of Blaine requires a building permit: Sec. 101-7(b)(1) states no person shall erect, alter, remodel, wreck or move any kind of a structure without first securing one. The zoning administrator (director of community development) reviews the site plan for conformity with the development code before the building official issues the permit, per Sec. 101-7(c). A ground-mounted solar system is listed as an accessory use in the Farm Residential (FR) district under Sec. 109-52(6) and the Residential Estate (RE) district under Sec.

109-84(7), each cross-referencing its own numeric standards. Under Sec. 109-54(25) (FR) and the parallel Sec. 109-86(21) (RE), the array must sit in the rear yard only, keep a 20-foot side yard setback and a 30-foot rear yard setback, and reach no more than 15 feet in height at full tilt. Its footprint, combined with any other attached or detached accessory structures on the lot, cannot exceed 3,000 square feet in the FR district or 2,000 square feet in the RE district. The code also requires the panels be designed and located to avoid solar glare or reflection onto neighboring properties and the right-of-way, and it puts the burden on the property owner to orient reflection angles away from neighbors' windows, with buffering required where necessary.

Outside the low-density residential zones, ground-mounted solar is instead listed as an accessory use subject to conditional use permit review in the Planned Office/Industrial, General Business, and I-1/I-2 industrial districts, meaning the planning commission and city council weigh it case by case rather than under a fixed setback table.