Athletic training facilities can now open in Bloomington's FD-2 Freeway Development district without special approval. The City Council unanimously adopted an ordinance amending City Code Chapter 21 to make them a permitted use in the zone along American Boulevard. A business asked for the change, not city staff: Just for Kix, a children's dance studio.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNThe council unanimously adopted a privately initiated ordinance amending City Code Chapter 21.09/28
Until this vote, the code prohibited sports training facilities in FD-2. That meant even a dance studio couldn't lease space in the office and commercial buildings along the freeway corridor. City notices list 2 applicants on the case, #PL202600146: Mini Kix, Inc., doing business as Just for Kix, and AEY Associates, LLC.
The studio isn't new to the area. Its Richfield/Bloomington program was started in 2002 by director Heather Daggett and teaches kids from age 2 through 12th grade, according to the studio. Classes currently meet at House of Prayer Church, 7625 Chicago Avenue S. in Richfield. The studio's page doesn't mention the American Boulevard move yet.
How we got here: the request went through the usual 2-step process for a privately initiated code amendment. The Planning Commission held a public hearing on September 3, 2026. The City Council then held its own public hearing, scheduled for September 28, 2026, and voted unanimously to adopt the ordinance.
The change applies to the whole FD-2 district, not just one address. Because athletic training facilities are now a permitted use, any similar business that meets the district's other standards can open there without asking the council for its own exception. One dance studio asked for the rule change, and now every landlord in the district can rent to this kind of tenant.
Where it stands: the ordinance is adopted, and the sources don't list any further council action. The rest is mostly up to the studio: building out the space, getting permits and setting an opening date. We'll update this story when that happens.
From the meeting: City Council Meeting, September 28, 2026.
