What do these permits involve in Dakota County?

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Shoreland / Floodplain Permit (Ordinance 50, townships)

The county's building and zoning permits page states: "All cities and townships in Dakota County have land use and zoning authority. Building permits are issued by the city or township. Additional county permits are required in townships within designated shoreland and floodplain." For property in a township, it directs the owner to call the township and also the county at 952-891-7000 to determine whether the property is within the jurisdiction of the County Shoreland Zoning and Floodplain Management Ordinance. Ordinance 50 applies to shoreland and floodplain areas in the county's unincorporated townships, and §6.01 requires a shoreland permit from the zoning administrator before, among other things, constructing or demolishing structures or building additions regardless of cost and size (including fences over five feet, ground-mounted solar panels, decks, stairs and signs), installing or altering a septic system, and grading and filling not exempted by the ordinance. A business building or expanding on township land near a lake, river or floodplain, and the contractor doing the work, should expect this county permit in addition to the township building permit.

Driveway and New Street Access Permit — commercial access onto a county highway

The county's driveway and new street permits page states: "This application is used to obtain a new residential, commercial driveway or new street that will access onto a county highway. Contractors must follow the county's Construction Specifications." As published on that page (last updated 06/03/2026), the fee is $350 for commercial access ($135 for residential or agricultural access). A business opening or relocating on a site whose new driveway connects to a county highway — and the contractor building it — needs this permit; applications go through the One Stop Roadway Permit Shop, and the Right of Way/Permits Manager can be reached at 952-891-7115. The county published a recommended 2027 fee schedule (public notice dated Sept. 3, 2026; County Board public hearing Oct. 6, 2026; proposed to take effect Jan. 1, 2027); the figure here is the one the county's own page shows for the current period.

Business Recycling and Organics Requirements (Ordinance 110)

Ordinance 110 imposes these duties directly on commercial generator owners and managers (§2.22: any entity that is not a residential source generator), and the county's recycling pages name property owners and managers of commercial buildings as responsible. Under §16.02 a business must deliver collected recyclables to a recycling facility and collected organics for food recovery, composting or anaerobic digestion, keep collection capacity sufficient to prevent overflowing containers, comply with §16.05, and submit an annual report on the county's form by Jan. 31. Section 16.05 requires the designated list of recyclables to be collected, every trash container to be within 10 feet of a recycling container with equal access, all containers labelled, and abatement messaging given to employees and tenants at least annually and within 30 days of a new hire, new tenant or program change; §16.06 sets the label colours (blue for recycling, green for organics, gray or black for trash). Organics: under §16.04 a large commercial organics generator must separate back-of-house organics and file its own annual report by Jan. 31. Section 2.59 defines that as listed classifications — including restaurants, grocery stores, caterers, hotels, shopping centres and office buildings with dining services — "that generate one ton or more of municipal solid waste per week or contract for eight cubic yards or more per week per location, and generates organics back-of-house"; grocery stores were phased in Jan. 1, 2022 and restaurants, caterers, hotels and shopping centres Jan. 1, 2024. Section 16.01(B) separately requires cities over 10,000 people to adopt ordinances covering multi-unit residential buildings (§16.03) and large event venues (§16.05); the commercial-generator duties above come from the county ordinance itself.

Subsurface Sewage Treatment System (SSTS) Construction Permit

Applies to a business property served by a septic system in the county's septic jurisdiction. The county's construction page states: "For properties located within Dakota County's jurisdiction (shoreland areas, cities of Randolph, New Trier and Hastings and townships of Randolph and Waterford) permits can be obtained through Dakota County after a design is completed." The county's septic page sends compliance inspection reports for other properties to the local municipality with septic system jurisdiction. A state-licensed designer designs the system; the applicant submits the SSTS permit application, the design with two separate soils verifications, a detailed site plan and the permit fee to the Environmental Resources Department, which may schedule a pre-inspection. A licensed installer installs the system after the permit is issued, a final inspection is required before the system is covered, and the county must receive the installer-signed as-built record before issuing a certificate of compliance. The fees are as published under "Permit fees" on that page (last updated 09/21/2026) and are listed with their labels in the fee field. The county published a recommended 2027 fee schedule (public notice dated Sept. 3, 2026; County Board public hearing Oct. 6, 2026; proposed to take effect Jan. 1, 2027); the figure here is the one the county's own page shows for the current period.

Permit	Issuing agency	Fee	Renews	Last checked
Shoreland / Floodplain Permit (Ordinance 50, townships)only if it applies to you	Dakota County Environmental Resources Department	The current shoreland/floodplain permit fee is not published on the county's building and zoning permits page; contact Environmental Resources (952-891-7557, environ@co.dakota.mn.us) for the current amount.	per project; obtained before the work starts	2026-10-13
Driveway and New Street Access Permit — commercial access onto a county highwayonly if it applies to you	Dakota County Transportation Department, Highway Permit Office	$350 per commercial access permit, as published on the county's driveway and new street permits page	per access	2026-10-13
Business Recycling and Organics Requirements (Ordinance 110)	Dakota County Environmental Resources Department	Ordinance 110 §16 sets duties for commercial generators, not a license fee: there is no fee to the county for complying. The cost to a business is its hauling or food-recovery service.	ongoing; annual report on the county's form due by Jan. 31 each year	2026-10-13
Subsurface Sewage Treatment System (SSTS) Construction Permitonly if it applies to you	Dakota County Environmental Resources Department	SSTS construction permit fees, as published on the county's septic construction page (last updated 09/21/2026): Type I System $461; Type II System $232; Type III System $461; Type IV System $533; Repair System $232; Second Soil Verification $308. Large Septic System (more than 2,500 gallons per day capacity): Construction Permit $1,071; Annual Operating Permit $167; Septic System Variance $1,198.	permits are valid for up to one year from their date of issue	2026-10-13

Business licenses and permits in Dakota County, Minnesota

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Permits that apply to every type of business in Dakota County