Why North Oaks, MN is One of the Only US Cities Unmapped by Google Street View

I recently discovered this crazy fact: There's one city in Minnesota that is one of the few cities in the US that isn't accessible on Google Street View. Absolutely NO roads in this town have Google Street View capabilities, and that town is North Oaks.

North Oaks is a northern suburb of St. Paul, an area of the state that you would think have plenty of Google Street View pictures. And they did, until 2008.

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Why There's No Google Street View of North Oaks, MN

We are all familiar with Google Street View. They've got a little car that drives around with a camera on it that takes pictures of the surrounding area. I like it sometimes so if I'm going somewhere new I have an idea of where I'm going.

But the town of North Oaks has no Google Street View whatsoever, and that's because in 2008, the town threatened a lawsuit against Google.

Why? Because every part of North Oaks is technically private property.

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According to The Independent, "Every resident’s property line goes halfway into the street, effectively making the entire area private land."

City officials sent a letter to Google threatening a lawsuit, and Google pulled down all Street View pictures of the town, making it one of the only places unmapped by Google Street View.

Isn't that wild?! I took a peek myself and, sure enough, you can't get anywhere in North Oaks using Google Street View.

Even when I try to look up directions to a location in North Oaks, Google Maps says "This route has restricted usage or private roads", so while it'll still get you to your destination, it just may not be 100% accurate.