New parking restrictions will face many Minnesota drivers next week

Don’t look now, but there are a slew of new restrictions facing many drivers across Minnesota, with some starting as early as next week.

It’s often said that there are only two seasons in Minnesota: winter and road construction, right? And while there are still several road construction projects underway across the Land of 10,000 Lakes, the calendar — and Mother Nature — is keeping pace with seasonal parking restrictions that begin next week in many parts of the state.

While seasonal parking restrictions do not coincide with a specific calendar date in Minnesota’s two largest cities, Minneapolis and St. Paul, many other municipalities impose on-street parking restrictions, usually beginning in November.

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For example, in Rochester, Minnesota’s third-largest city, seasonal parking restrictions begin on November 1 of each year — which is next Wednesday — when alternate side parking goes into effect throughout the city. According to the City of Rochester website, this means:

• Rochester’s alternate side parking requirements are in effect citywide from November 1 to April 1 from 2 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Park your car on the side of the street with equal house numbers when the calendar date is even.
• Park your car on the side of the street with ODD house numbers when the calendar date is ODD.

Additional cities in Minnesota including St. Cloud and Winona also have seasonal parking restrictions beginning in November, with St. Cloud taking effect on November 1 and Winona beginning on November 15. Both cities also have similar side parking requirements during the winter months.

However, instead of implementing seasonal parking restrictions on a specific date, other Minnesota cities plus Minneapolis and St. Paul wait for Old Man Winter to fall several inches of snow before declaring a snow emergency, which then restricts on-street parking in a sideways manner. Similar alternative.

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Duluth, Red Wing, Mankato and Lake City are just some of the other Minnesota municipalities that have adopted a similar seasonal parking plan that only goes into effect after a snow event.

To make sure you won’t get an unexpected parking ticket — even if there’s no snow on the ground yet — it’s always a good idea to check with the municipality where you’ll be parking to check specific seasonal parking restrictions.

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