Brooklyn Park, MN Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

903(L) sets the standards for outdoor dining as a nonresidential accessory use. Outdoor dining is only permitted if it is depicted on an approved site plan, and outdoor seating is allowed within any setback area; temporary seating may even extend into the public right-of-way, provided the sidewalk remains clear to a width of five feet for pedestrians. Where a restaurant wants to serve alcohol outdoors, the patio or deck must be contiguous to the licensed premises and enclosed with a fence built to code standards that prevents entry onto the patio from outside the fenced area, and the operator must carry the outdoor patio or deck area under the required liquor liability insurance for the premises.

Trash and garbage receptacles for the dining area must be provided and adequately screened from view, lighting must be sufficient for public safety, directed downward, and compatible with the surrounding area, and smoking on the patio is allowed only if it complies with the Minnesota Freedom to Breathe Act of 2007. The outdoor dining area can be covered with a canopy or awning, but the code specifically prohibits enclosing it, keeping the use genuinely outdoor rather than an unpermitted building addition. These standards apply citywide to any commercial site adding outdoor seating, from a downtown storefront to a shopping-center restaurant.