White Bear Township, Minn., Code of Ordinances ch. 6, art. IV § 6-146
Purpose and intent
Operative Text
(a) The purpose of this article is to protect the public health, safety and general welfare of the people of the town. These general objectives include, among others, the following: (1) To protect the character and stability of residential areas within the town. (2) To correct and prevent housing conditions that adversely affect or are likely to adversely affect the life, safety, general welfare and health, including the physical, mental and social well-being of persons occupying dwellings within the town. (3) To provide minimum standards for the maintenance and conservation of existing residential buildings, the rehabilitation of existing substandard residential buildings, thus to prevent slums and blight. (4) To provide minimum standards for cooking, heating and sanitary equipment necessary to the health and safety of occupants of buildings. (5) To provide minimum standards for light and ventilation, necessary to health and safety. (6) To prevent overcrowding of dwellings by providing minimum space standards per occupant for each dwelling unit. (7) To provide a diversity of housing choice and a reasonable amount of low and moderate income housing in the town. (b) With respect to rental disputes, and except as otherwise specifically provided by the terms of this article, it is not the intention of the town board to intrude upon the fair and accepted contractual relationship between tenant and landlord. The town board does not intend to intervene as an advocate of either party, nor to act as an arbiter, nor to be receptive to complaints from tenant or landlord which are not specifically and clearly relevant to the provisions of this article. In the absence of such relevance with regard to rental disputes, it is intended that the contracting parties exercise such legal sanctions as are available to them without the intervention of town government. Neither, in enacting this article, is it the intention of the town board to interfere or permit interference with legal rights to personal privacy. (c) Minimum standards in this article shall not exceed the minimum standards provided for new construction by the state building code. In the event of conflict between this article and the state building code, the state building code standards shall govern.
White Bear Township Code of Ordinances ch. 6, art. IV § 6-146 establishes the overarching purpose of the township's residential housing article: to safeguard public health, safety, and welfare by setting minimum standards for maintenance, sanitation, light, ventilation, and occupancy in residential buildings. The article is explicitly not intended to serve as a dispute-resolution mechanism between landlords and tenants, and the township does not position itself as an advocate or arbitrator in rental disagreements. Where conflicts arise between this article's standards and the Minnesota state building code, the state building code controls.
Plain English — not legal advice.
Under White Bear Township Code of Ordinances ch. 6, art. IV § 6-146, compliant property operators generally maintain residential units in accordance with the minimum standards for sanitation, heating, cooking equipment, light, ventilation, and occupancy space outlined in this article. Because the provision explicitly defers to the state building code when conflicts arise, operators familiar with state construction standards will find those benchmarks serve as the ceiling for what this article can require. The township does not intend to intervene in ordinary contractual landlord-tenant disputes, so operators are expected to rely on available legal channels for matters outside the article's defined scope.
General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.
Section 6-146 of White Bear Township Code of Ordinances ch. 6, art. IV makes clear that the township's housing article exists to protect residents' health, safety, and welfare through minimum maintenance and habitability standards — not to mediate general rental disputes. Tenants whose concerns relate specifically to conditions covered by this article, such as inadequate heating, sanitation, ventilation, or overcrowding, may have grounds to raise those conditions as relevant to the article's provisions. For disputes that fall outside the article's defined scope, the provision itself directs parties toward other available legal remedies, and tenant-rights organizations can help identify what options may exist.
General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.
Generated November 13, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.
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