Minneapolis Advances Plan for Safe Outdoor Parking Lots

City planners recommend zoning changes to allow managed overnight parking for people living in vehicles.

Apr. 8, 2026 at 9:28pm

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A brightly colored, high-contrast silkscreen-style illustration of multiple parked cars repeated in a tight grid pattern, representing the idea of managed overnight parking lots for people living in vehicles.A pop art-inspired illustration captures the concept of regulated overnight parking lots for people living in vehicles, a complex solution to a growing urban challenge.Minneapolis Today

The Minneapolis City Planning Commission unanimously backed a zoning amendment to create 'Safe Outdoor Parking' lots, which would be managed, temporary sites where people living in vehicles could legally sleep overnight. The proposal now heads to the City Council and includes rules around minimum lot size, on-site staffing, daily clearing, and the need for an interim use permit and business license for any operators.

Why it matters

The plan aims to provide a regulated alternative to people sleeping in their cars on city streets, which has drawn concerns about crime, sanitation, and the criminalization of homelessness. However, the proposal also faces criticism that formal lots could concentrate these issues in specific areas.

The details

The draft ordinance would add safe outdoor parking as a temporary use in the zoning code and require operators to secure both an interim use permit and a business license. Sites would need to be at least 10,000 square feet, actively managed and staffed during operating hours, provide hygiene facilities, follow a security plan, and be cleared out every day. The interim use permit could allow operations for up to five years and would require a public hearing.

  • On April 6, the Minneapolis City Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the zoning change.
  • The proposal now heads to the City Council for further consideration and ordinance drafting.

The players

Minneapolis City Planning Commission

The city's planning commission that unanimously backed the zoning amendment to create 'Safe Outdoor Parking' lots.

Meg McMahan

The Minneapolis Planning Director who stated the city expects sites to cover at least 10,000 square feet and be geared toward larger institutional or nonprofit parking lots.

Ventura Village resident

A resident who criticized the proposal, arguing that the cars 'become drug dens,' leaving behind used needles and trash.

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What they’re saying

“It's not really intended for single‑family home properties.”

— Meg McMahan, Minneapolis Planning Director

“The cars 'become drug dens,' leaving behind used needles and trash.”

— Ventura Village resident

What’s next

With the Planning Commission's recommendation secured, the zoning change now heads to the City Council for further consideration and ordinance drafting. City staff caution that setting up the program will require tweaks to other parts of city code, including Titles 11, 12 and 13, to address sanitation, licensing and exceptions to rules that currently bar sheltering in vehicles.

The takeaway

This proposal highlights the complex challenges cities face in balancing public safety, sanitation, and the criminalization of homelessness. While regulated lots could facilitate outreach, the plan also risks concentrating issues in specific areas and faces criticism from residents concerned about the potential for crime and disorder.