If you park near the University of Minnesota, two completely different systems can tow your car, and students mix them up all the time. Campus lots and ramps run on U parking permits and their own enforcement, while the city streets around campus run on Minneapolis parking rules, including snow emergencies. A car towed off a U lot goes one place, and a car towed off a Minneapolis street goes to the city impound lot. Knowing which happened is the whole game.
Two campuses, two sides of the river
The U’s main campus straddles the Mississippi in Minneapolis, with the East Bank and West Bank near I-35W, Washington Avenue, and University Avenue, and the St. Paul campus a few miles northeast. That means most students are parking in the City of Minneapolis, where city rules apply on the streets, even though the lots right next to the lecture halls are the university’s own. The line between “U property” and “city street” can be a single curb.
Campus lots run on permits
University parking lots, ramps, and permit zones are enforced by the U, not the city. Park in a permit-only lot without the right permit, overstay a metered campus spot, or leave a car where the U has posted no parking, and it can be ticketed or towed under the university’s rules. If your car disappears from a campus lot or ramp, contact University Parking and Transportation Services first, because a city lookup will not find a car the U towed.
City streets run on Minneapolis rules
The moment you park on a public street in Dinkytown, Marcy-Holmes, Cedar-Riverside, or Como, you are under Minneapolis rules. That includes snow emergencies. When the city declares one, the three-day sequence applies: no parking on Snow Emergency routes after 9 p.m. Day 1, off the even side and parkways by 8 a.m. Day 2, and off the odd side by 8 a.m. Day 3. Students who leave a car on the street over a snowy weekend are a big share of the roughly 1,100 vehicles the city tows in an average snow emergency.
If the city towed it
A car towed off a Minneapolis street goes to the City of Minneapolis impound lot at 50 Van White Memorial Blvd, phone (612) 673-5777. Search by plate or VIN at minneapolismn.gov first. The 2026 city fees are a $222 tow, $18 per day storage charged by midnight, and a $6 notice letter. During Day 1 and Day 2 of a snow emergency the lot is open 24 hours, then returns to 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
How to not get towed near campus
Sign up for Minneapolis snow alerts by texting MPLSALERTS to 77295, so you know to move your car before a plow route closes. Read the signs on your block, since permit zones and street-sweeping days change street to street. And keep a U parking permit current if you rely on campus lots. If you do get stuck with a dead battery in a January ramp, Quick Tow Minneapolis is a referral service that takes the call and matches you with an independent local operator who quotes the job before rolling.
Frequently asked questions
My car is gone from a campus lot. Who do I call? University Parking and Transportation Services, not the city. The U enforces its own lots and ramps, and a city impound search will not find a car the university towed.
My car is gone from a street near campus. Who do I call? The City of Minneapolis impound lot at (612) 673-5777, or search by plate or VIN at minneapolismn.gov. Streets around campus are city property and follow Minneapolis rules.
Do snow emergencies apply to student parking? On city streets, yes. The three-day sequence applies the same near campus as anywhere in Minneapolis. Sign up for alerts by texting MPLSALERTS to 77295.
What does a city tow cost for a student car? The same city fees as everyone: a $222 tow, $18 per day storage, and a $6 notice letter in 2026. Storage is charged by midnight, so pick it up quickly.