Minnesota Statutes

Minn. Stat. § 173.08 (2026)

Excluded Road Advertising Devices

✓ current as of May 2026

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Subdivision 1.Advertising devices restricted.

No advertising device, excepting the advertising devices described and permitted under sections 173.01 to 173.27, shall be erected or maintained in an adjacent area, after June 8, 1971, except the following:

(1) directional and other official signs, including, but not limited to, signs pertaining to natural wonders, scenic and historical attractions, which are required or authorized by law, and which comply with rules which shall be promulgated by the commissioner relative to their lighting, size, spacing and other requirements as may be appropriate to implement sections 173.01 to 173.27;

(2) advertising devices advertising the sale or lease of property upon which they are located, provided that there shall not be more than one such sign, advertising the sale or lease of the same property, visible to traffic proceeding in any one direction on any one interstate or primary highway;

(3) advertising devices advertising activities conducted on the property on which they are located, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, goods sold, stored, manufactured, processed, or mined thereon, services rendered thereon, and entertainment provided thereon;

(4) advertising devices stating the name and address of the owner, lessee or occupant of such property or information otherwise required or authorized by law to be posted or displayed thereon;

(5) public utility signs;

(6) service club and religious notices;

(7) advertising devices of which the advertising copy or the name of the owner thereof is in no part visible from the traveled way of the aforesaid highways;

(8) advertising devices which are located, or which are to be located, in business areas and which comply, or will comply when erected, with the provisions of sections 173.01 to 173.27;

(9) signs placed temporarily by auctioneers under section 169.07;

(10) community identification signs which are located within two miles of the community and do not exceed 750 square feet. "Community" means a county, town, or home rule charter or statutory city. Prior to the erection of a community identification sign, the community must:

(i) obtain approval from the governing body of the community;

(ii) consult with local road authorities on placement and location of the sign; and

(iii) obtain consent of the owner of the land on which the sign is to be erected.

Subd. 2.Advertising devices prohibited.

No advertising device shall be erected or maintained:

(1) in or within 500 feet of national parks, state parks, local parks, historic sites, and public picnic or rest areas, provided that, an advertising device may be permitted within 500 feet of the park, site or area on commercially zoned property, or in the case of a municipality which has no zoning ordinance, with the approval, by resolution, of the municipality;

(2) within 100 feet of a church or school.

Subd. 3.Seed sign exemption.

Crop varietal and seed corn signs adjacent to interstate and primary highways may be erected if the device:

(1) is located on demonstration plats;

(2) is located on private property;

(3) does not violate section 160.27 or 160.2715; and

(4) does not reference an off-site address where the product may be sold.

Subd. 4.Violations; removal.

The Department of Transportation may remove signs that violate this section using the removal procedures under section 173.13, subdivision 11.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 6 cases, 1981–2007 · leading case: State Ex Rel. Spannaus v. Hopf, 323 N.W.2d 746 (Minn. 1982).

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State Ex Rel. Spannaus v. Hopf, 323 N.W.2d 746 (Minn. 1982). · cites it 30× “Hennepin County District Court granted the state’s petition to condemn these signs under the Act on the ground that they are located within 100 feet of a church, in violation of Minn.Stat. § 173.08, subd. 2(2) (1980). The state also filed two petitions in Ramsey County: State v.”

In Re the Denial of Eller Media Co.'s Applications for Outdoor Advert. Device Permits in the City of Mounds View, 664 N.W.2d 1 (Minn. 2003). · cites it 12× “708 (b); (2) to the extent that the operation of the municipal golf course could be considered commercial, it was an incidental use of Mounds View's PF zone, and therefore the signs were barred under 23 C.”

In Re the Denial of Eller Media Co.'s Applications for Outdoor Advert. Device Permits, 642 N.W.2d 492 (Minn. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 24× “Relators allege that the commissioner’s deputy (1) erred in concluding that the city’s public facilities zone was not a “business area” under Minn.Stat. § 173.08, subd. 1(8) (2000) by reading “business area” to refer to private business exclusively, rather than municipalities,…”

State Ex Rel. Spannaus v. Lutsen Resorts, Inc., 310 N.W.2d 495 (Minn. 1981). · cites it 4× “Minn.Stat. § 173.08 (1980). *497 The commissioner of transportation is authorized to acquire signs that do not fall within the exclusions by gift, purchase or eminent domain.”

Blocher Outdoor Advert. Co. v. Minnesota Dep't of Transp., 347 N.W.2d 88 (Minn. Ct. App. 1984). · cites it 2× “Minn.Stat. § 173.08, subd. 1(h). A business area includes property which is not zoned business, commercial, or industrial, but which constitutes an unzoned commercial or industrial area.”

State v. Otterstad, 734 N.W.2d 642 (Minn. 2007). · cites it 2× “[1] Minnesota Statutes § 173.08, subd. 1 (2006), similarly bars the placement of "advertising devices" adjacent to the right-of-way of an interstate or trunk highway.”

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