Blaine, MN Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Blaine's 105th Avenue Redevelopment District (RD), the city's designated mixed-use entertainment district near the National Sports Center, carries its own design-guideline chapter distinct from citywide zoning standards. Sec. 117-31, Architectural control commercial, requires that at least 75 percent of a building's exterior wall finishes combine at least three approved materials, brick, natural or cultured stone, glass, stucco, fiber cement or composite siding, architectural metal, or integrally colored rock-faced block, present on every elevation. The remaining wall area must use decorative rock-faced concrete block or comparable materials approved by the zoning administrator.

Franchises and national chains with standardized architecture and signage must scale down their branding to meet these standards; building articulation elements are capped at a 40-foot maximum average spacing, and facades need a projecting bay, ground-level recess, or a change in window rhythm combined with a parapet-height or material change. Every building must have at least one customer entrance facing an abutting public or private street rather than only the parking lot, and that entrance must be architecturally emphasized with awnings, pillars, or special materials.

Darkly tinted windows blocking two-way visibility at ground level are prohibited. A companion section, Sec. 117-27, sets parallel guidelines for residential buildings in the district, including a minimum two-story, maximum 150-foot height limit. The city's development procedure under Sec. 117-21 requires a development agreement addressing site and building design criteria before any building permit issues, and Sec. 117-31 review is administered by the zoning administrator as part of site plan approval; noncompliant plans are rejected until revised.