The commission voted 5-0 to grant a conditional use permit for up to 490 remote airport parking spaces inside the existing RiverView parking structure next to the RiverView office tower and Crowne Plaza in the South Loop. A parking study found surplus capacity even assuming full occupancy of the surrounding buildings. Operations cannot begin until the long-deteriorating ramp is fully repaired and inspected and its floodlight-style fixtures are replaced with code-compliant fully shielded lighting. The applicant said a final inspection is expected in late October or early November, and the decision is final unless appealed to the City Council by 4:30 p.m. Oct. 5.
Decided: The Planning Commission approved a 490-space airport parking operation inside the RiverView parking ramp at 3601 American Boulevard East, on the condition that ramp repairs and lighting upgrades are finished first; the decision is final unless appealed to the City Council.
Result: Approved, 5 to 0, by voice vote
The meeting video doesn't make clear how each member voted. The city posts official voting results once the minutes are approved.
Following this: Planning Commission OKs 490 Airport Parking Spaces in Rehabbed RiverView Ramp
The developer, which bought the office tower and ramp in December and also owns the adjacent hotel and apartments, said it has spent 'many millions of dollars' over six months repairing a ramp that city staff said had areas deemed unsafe due to crumbling concrete. The company runs four shuttles from the Crowne Plaza and plans to add three more to serve both the hotel and park-and-fly customers, with waiting in a renovated office lobby. Commissioner White supported the permit but said they were disappointed that remote parking relies on shuttles rather than the Blue Line running alongside the site.
Following this: Planning Commission OKs 490 Airport Parking Spaces in Rehabbed RiverView Ramp
Staff proposed merging the 'health club' and 'sports training facility' uses into a single 'fitness and sports facility' category, allowed in all commercial districts except B1. Facilities under 10,000 square feet would be allowed in all industrial districts, while larger ones would need to be adjacent to an arterial or collector road; the current cap of 50% of a building's floor area would be dropped. Commissioners generally supported the approach but raised concerns about children and families mixing with truck traffic, drop-off congestion, lighting and signage, especially in the industrial area south of Old Shakopee Road. The proposal goes to a City Council study session Oct. 26, with a public hearing expected in December or January.
Following this: Bloomington Weighs One 'Fitness and Sports Facility' Category, With Smaller Gyms Allowed in Industrial Zones
Staff announced that the Oct. 15 Planning Commission meeting is canceled. On Oct. 29 the commission will conduct its annual review of the city's capital improvement plan for consistency with the comprehensive plan, hold a study item on setbacks and permitted encroachments, and receive an update on the Bloomington 2050 comprehensive plan.
Decided: City staff announced that the October 15 meeting is canceled and that the October 29 meeting will cover the city's capital improvement plan and an update on the 2050 comprehensive plan.
Following this: Bloomington 2050: Where the plan stands
In response to a commissioner's question, staff said that while citywide height standard amendments were adopted earlier this year, a further review of height and development intensity standards specifically for the South Loop is still underway. Staff expects to bring it to the commission in late fall or early winter.
Following this: Bloomington's South Loop height and density rules get their own review
Oct. 6 · Deadline
The commission's 490-space airport parking permit for the RiverView ramp became final unless the applicant or a member of the public appealed to the City Council. The chair said the deadline was 4:30 p.m. Tuesday; captions read "October 5," but the code's three-business-day window ends Oct. 6.
Oct. 15 · Meeting
The Planning Commission's Oct. 15 meeting is canceled because there were no items to consider.
Oct. 26 · Meeting
Planning staff take the sports, health and recreation use review to a City Council study session.
Oct. 29 · Meeting
Planning Commission meets for its annual check of the city's capital improvement plan against the comprehensive plan, a study item on permitted setbacks and encroachments, and a Bloomington 2050 comprehensive plan update.
No date yet · Follow-up
The RiverView ramp's owner expects a final repair inspection in late October or the first half of November. Airport parking can't open until repairs are finished, inspected and lighting is brought to code.
No date yet · Public hearing
Public hearing before the Planning Commission on the proposed fitness and sports facility use, expected in December or January; the City Council makes the final decision on code changes.
No date yet · Follow-up
Staff will try to bring industrial vacancy figures, plus traffic and drop-off safety considerations, when the sports facility study returns.
No date yet · Follow-up
Staff are studying added height and density standards for the South Loop and expect to bring them to the commission later this fall or in early winter.
What was asked, what the room said, and what the public record answers. Times are from the captions and approximate.
Asked by Commissioner Linnee
In the room
Staff said a conditional use permit is permanent and goes with the land, even if the property is sold. The city can revoke one only through a hearing, usually over documented violations of conditions. To add spaces, the owner would have to apply again with an updated parking study.
What the record says
That matches the code. The approval is recorded with the county and lapses only if the use doesn't start within a year or stops for a year. The council can suspend or revoke it only for violations, after at least 10 days' written notice and a hearing. Changes to its conditions go back to the body that approved it.
Asked by Commissioner Munster
In the room
Staff said nobody from the city will count cars. It can ask the operator for data from its kiosk system, and otherwise relies on complaints or on seeing cars parked where they shouldn't be.
What the record says
The code doesn't require regular reporting. Enforcement runs through the permit conditions: the City Council can suspend or revoke the permit if a condition is broken, after notice and a hearing. The rules also require all airport parking, gates and shuttle storage to stay inside the ramp.
Asked by Commissioner Munster
In the room
Staff said the ramp's old floodlight-style fixtures don't meet the code's full cut-off rule, and the permit lets the city require new ones. Staff will also measure light levels inside the ramp at night. A condition requires bringing lighting up to code before airport parking starts.
What the record says
The code backs that up. New remote airport parking must meet the city's lighting section, which requires 90-degree cut-off, flat-lens fixtures unless an exception applies. Fully enclosed, secured ramps are exempt from that limit.
Asked by Commissioner White
In the room
Staff left it to the applicant. The Kaeding Development representative said the Crowne Plaza runs four shuttles now and will add three, for seven covering both the hotel and the park-and-fly. No daily trip count was given.
What the record says
Still open. No source we found gives a daily trip count. The city's rules require shuttle storage, along with all parking and gates, to be inside the ramp. A parking study was required to show the ramp has room for the 490 spaces.
Asked by Commissioner Munster
In the room
The applicant said it expects a final inspection at the end of October or in the first two weeks of November. Staff said parts of the ramp had been deemed unsafe, and a condition bars airport parking until repairs are done and inspected.
What the record says
The commission's conditions set that order; we found no public city date. Separately, since Jan. 1, 2026, ramps older than five years need a city operating license. To get one, a licensed engineer must inspect the ramp and report that it can carry its design loads, and the license is renewed about every two years.
Asked by Commissioner Linnee
In the room
The applicant said each building sits in a separate LLC with mostly shared ownership ("90%-95%"), and that a sale would change little, though converting the office tower to housing would bring a new parking conversation.
What the record says
County records match: the ramp belongs to Bloomington QOZ Ramp LLC, bought in December 2025 for $4.9 million, and nearby parcels are held by other QOZ-named LLCs. The airport parking permit is recorded with the county against the ramp property, so it doesn't depend on who owns it.
Asked by Commissioner White
In the room
Staff said the 50% cap would not carry over to the new fitness and sports facility use. Only the location rule (next to a highway or collector road) would stay, for larger sites.
What the record says
Today the code allows a health club in most industrial districts only if it is "adjacent to arterial or collector road and not exceeding 50% building floor area." Staff said the 50% rule came from a code change requested by Vertical Endeavors. The new size-based approach is only proposed; no public hearing has been set.
Asked by Commissioner White
In the room
Staff didn't have a number and said they'd check with the assessor. They added that industrial land had been one of the city's strongest sectors in value over the past five years. Later in the meeting, staff said the 2026 assessment report has no vacancy data and they would keep looking before the item returns.
What the record says
Still open. The 2026 Assessing Report has no vacancy figure. It does say industrial values fell 2.1% for 2026, "a change in direction from years past," as rent growth slowed and expenses rose.
Asked by Commissioner Munster
In the room
Staff said they read it as the property touching the road, even if the driveway is on a local street. A shared office park would likely need a recorded shared-access agreement or easement.
What the record says
The rule's wording is "adjacent to arterial or collector road," and we found no definition of "adjacent" in the zoning code, so staff's reading controls for now. The proposal is still being drafted.
Asked by Commissioner Linnee
In the room
Linnee pointed to drop-off backups at a new hockey arena in Maple Grove. Staff said they would look at it with traffic staff. Commissioners also raised lighting, marked walkways and signs for areas where teens learn to drive.
What the record says
Still open. Current definitions let sports training facilities host competition only as a subordinate activity "with sufficient parking." Staff will take the study to a City Council study session Oct. 26, with a public hearing expected in December or January.
