New Prague, Minn., Mun. Code Ch. 150 (2026) § 154.05

(A) Local agent required. If the owner does not reside in any of the following Minnesota counties: Blue Earth, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Le Sueur, Nicollet, Ramsey, Rice, Scott, Sibley, Steele, Waseca, Washington, then the owner must provide the city with a local agent that resides within one of the aforementioned counties and who is responsible for maintenance and operation of the rental dwelling and who is legally constituted and empowered to receive service and orders on behalf of the owner and to institute remedial action to effect such orders. The city shall be notified in writing of any change of agent by the owner of the rental dwelling.


(B) Owner identification. All partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies or other recognized business associations that own a rental dwelling to be licensed under this chapter shall submit, upon request of the compliance official, the name and address of all partners, shareholders or interest holders. If requested by the compliance official, information regarding the names and addresses of all partners, shareholders or interest holders must be submitted in a sworn affidavit to the city.


(C) Responsibility for acts of manager, operator, or agent. Licensees are responsible for the acts or omissions of their managers, operators, agents, or other authorized representatives.


(D) Conformance to laws. No rental license shall be issued, renewed or allowed to be maintained by the owner unless the rental dwelling conforms to all applicable federal, state, and local laws, rules, and regulations. This includes, but is certainly not limited to, all requirements contained in M.S. Ch. 504B.


(E) License inspections required. No rental license shall be issued, renewed or allowed to be maintained unless the owner agrees in the owner's application to permit inspections pursuant to this chapter.


(F) Posting and production of license. Every licensee of a rental dwelling with four or more units, shall conspicuously post the current rental license certificate issued by the city in the main entryway or other conspicuous location on site. An owner or agent of a rental dwelling must always produce a copy of the current rental license certificate for a rental dwelling upon the request from a tenant, prospective tenant, police officer or compliance official.


(G) Occupancy register required. Every licensee shall keep, or cause to be kept, a current register of occupancy for each dwelling unit that provides the following information:


(1) Dwelling unit address.


(2) Number of bedrooms in dwelling unit and the maximum number of occupants.


(3) Legal names and date of birth of adult occupants and number of persons under 18 years of age currently occupying the dwelling units.


(4) Dates renters occupied and vacated dwelling units.


(H) Standards and requirements.


(1) The maximum permissible occupancy of a rental dwelling unit must be determined by applying one of the two standards set forth in divisions (H)(1)(a) and (H)(1)(b) below. Whichever standard allows the greatest number of occupants for a given rental dwelling unit will be the governing standard for that unit:


(a) Square footage standard. Every bedroom shall contain not less than 70 square feet and every bedroom occupied by more than one person shall contain not less than 50 square feet of floor area for each occupant thereof.


(b) Headcount standard. Total number of occupants in the rental dwelling may not exceed two times the number of legal bedrooms plus one.


(c) A “legal bedroom” is any room or space used or intended to be used for sleeping purposes. In applying either standard in (H)(1)(a) or (H)(1)(b) above, occupants under the age of two years shall not be included in the calculations.


(2) No dwelling unit shall be rented or let to another which does not comply with the following requirements:


(a) Condition. Unless lawfully made the express responsibility of a tenant by law, lease, or ruling, licensees shall furnish and maintain approved devices, equipment or facilities for the prevention of insect, rodent, and pest infestation within a rental dwelling and when such infestation has taken place, shall be responsible for its abatement. For purposes of this division, the term “infestation” shall mean the presence within a rental dwelling of insects, rodents or other pests in a manner that materially endangers one or more persons.


(b) Smoke detectors. No smoke detector installed in a rental dwelling shall be allowed to remain disabled or nonfunctional. The tenant of a rental dwelling shall notify the owner or property manager after discovering that a detector is disabled or nonfunctional.


(c) Carbon monoxide alarms. Each dwelling unit shall have an approved and operational carbon monoxide alarm installed within ten feet of all sleeping rooms as required by M.S. §§ 299F.50 and 299F.51, as amended, unless an exception provided in said statutes applies.


(d) Fire extinguishers. All dwelling units shall be equipped with a fire extinguisher with a minimum rating of 2A 10BC (capacity equivalent to two and one-half gallons of water and ten square feet for a BC type fire). The extinguisher shall be located within the individual dwelling unit or in a common hallway or corridor within 50 feet of the dwelling unit door.


(e) Fire suppression/alarm systems. All fire suppression/alarm systems shall be maintained in accordance with the current Minnesota State Fire Code.


(f) Structural. All structural components shall be deemed acceptable so that, in the opinion of the Building Official, such components do not render the building hazardous as defined by M.S. § 463.15.


(g) Plumbing. All plumbing shall be maintained in a safe and sanitary condition.


(h) Mechanical. All mechanical equipment, venting and ducting shall be maintained in a safe condition.


(i) Electrical. All electrical equipment, wiring and appliances shall be properly installed and maintained in a safe condition.


(j) Storage of items. Combustible items shall not be stored within one foot of any fuel-burning appliance. Storage of items shall be orderly and shall not block or obstruct exits or access to required safety equipment.


(k) Means of egress. Within the dwelling units, a minimum three-foot-wide path shall be maintained to all points of egress (e.g. front/main door and egress windows in sleeping rooms). Common areas in multi-family structures (shared hallways, stairs and other common paths of travel) shall be clear of storage items for the full width of the means of egress system.


(l) Refuse. Unless lawfully made the express responsibility of a tenant by law, lease, or ruling, licensees shall equip rental dwellings with sufficient refuse collection to accommodate the amount of refuse produced on the property or as required by the city code.


(m) Fuel storage. LP tanks, gasoline containers and fueled equipment shall not be stored or repaired inside of a dwelling unit except for in an attached garage.


(n) Sidewalks and driveways. All private sidewalks, walkways, stairs, driveways, parking spaces and similar areas shall be kept in a proper state of repair and maintained free from hazardous conditions.


(o) Weather protection. The exterior of the structure that contains dwelling units shall be maintained in a manner that provides for adequate protection of the structural elements of the building from weather and other elements.


(I) License not transferable. The rental license issued pursuant to this chapter is for the property owner and the premises named on the approved license application. No transfer of a license is permitted from place to place or from the owner to another person or entity without complying with the requirements of an original application, except in the case in which an existing licensee is merely changing a business or corporate name or in the case in which an existing noncorporate licensee is incorporating and the incorporation does not affect the ownership or control of the property or the rental business.


(Ord. 344, passed 11-6-23)