Washington County

                                             Nebraska

 

 

 

 

 

                                          Zoning Resolution

                                                               No. 2005-19

 

                    (contains revisions through 11-1-2009) 

 

 

 

                                                             Adopted by

                                      Washington County, Nebraska

                                                             June 14, 2005

 

 

 

                                                                                 Prepared By

                                                            

 

 


 

                                                                                    WASHINGTON COUNTY, NEBRASKA

                                                                       ZONING RESOLUTION

 

                                                                                    Washington County, Nebraska

                                                                                                   ZONING RESOLUTION

 

Table of Contents:

 

Article 1            General Provisions                                                                                                          

Article 2            Construction & Definitions                                                                                       

Article 3            General Regulations                                                                                                    

                                            non-conformities                                                                                                   

                                            lot                                                                                                                                       

                                            yards                                                                                                                                 

                                            accessory buildings                                                                                             

                                            height                                                                                                                               

                                            recreational equipment storage                                                             

                                            screening                                                                                                                       

                                            sight triangle                                                                                                            

                                            manufactured homes                                                                                          

Article 4            Interpretation, District Boundaries & Zoning Map                              

Article 5            Districts                                                                                                                                     

                                            Previous Districts                                                                                                    

                                            A-1, Agricultural Primary                                                                                

                                            TA-1, Transitional Agriculture                                                                   

                                            HA, Homestead Agricultural                                                                        

                                            A-2, Agriculture Commercial                                                                          

                                            A-LSR, Lot Split Residential                                                                                

                                            RS-1, Rural Subdivision 1                                                                                      

                                            RS-2, Rural Subdivision 2                                                                                      

                                            RA, Rural Acreage                                                                                                   

                                            C-1, Retail Neighborhood Commercial                                                  

 

                                            C-2, Business Park Retail                                                                                     

 

                                            I-1, Industrial Center                                                                                            

 

                                            I-2, Agricultural General Industrial                                                     

                                            RMD, Residential Mixed Use                                                                             

                                            CMD, Commercial / Industrial Mixed Use                                             

                                            WPO, Wellhead Protection Overlay                                              

Article 6            Conditional Use Permits                                                                                              

                                            (Zoning Matrix after page 72)

Article 7            Supplemental Regulations                                                                                      

                                            Radio, TV & Wireless Communication Facilities                              

                                            Sand, Gravel, Mineral, etc. Extraction & storage                      

                                            Wind Energy Installation                                                                               

                                            Waste Disposal Sites & Landfills                                                                 

                                            Home Occupations                                                                                                  

                                            Off Street Automobile Storage                                                                   

                                            Required Parking                                                                                                    

                                            Signage                                                                                                                            

                                            Public Utilities                                                                                                           

                                            Lighting Standards                                                                                             

                                            Open Air Sales, Display & Storage                                                            

                                            Sanitary Landfill                                                                                                

                                            Paunch Manure                                                                                                    

                                            Sludge                                                                                                                            

                                            Construction & Demolition Waste Disposal                                  

                                            Corn Milling Biosolids                                                                                     

Article 8            Administration & Enforcement                                                                         

Article 9            Board of Zoning Adjustment                                                                               

Article 10          Amendments                                                                                                                      

Article 11          Fees & Sign Deposit                                                                                                         

Article 12          Legal Status Provisions                                                                                           

 

 

 

 

A resolution, consistent with the Comprehensive Development Plan, adopted for the purpose of promoting

health, safety, morals, convenience, order, prosperity, and welfare of the present and future inhabitants of

Washington County, Nebraska, to regulate and restrict the location, height, bulk, number of stories, size of

buildings and other structures, including tents, cabins, house trailers, and automobile trailers; the percentage of

lot areas which may be occupied, building setback lines; size of yards, courts, and other open spaces; the density

of population; the uses of buildings; and the uses of the land for agriculture, forestry, recreation, residence,

industry, and trade, after considering factors relating to soil conservation, water supply conservation, surface

water drainage and removal, or other uses; to divide the County into districts of such number, shape, and area as

may be best suited to carry out the purposes of this resolution to regulate, restrict, or prohibit the erection,

construction, reconstruction, alteration or use of buildings or structures, and the use, conditions of use or

occupancy of land in the unincorporated areas of the County; to provide for the adoption of a zoning map; to

provide for a board of zoning adjustment, its members, powers, and duties; to provide for off-street parking and

loading area requirements; to provide for conditional uses by conditional use permit; to provide for the proper

subdivision and development of land, as provided in the Subdivision Regulations; to provide for non-conforming

uses, to provide for the administration and the enforcement of these provisions, and for the violations of its

provisions and the prescribed penalties, and including among others such specific purposes as:

                (1)           Developing both urban and non-urban areas;

                (2)           Lessening congestion in the streets or roads;

                (3)           Reducing the waste of excessive amounts of roads;

                (4)           Securing safety from fire and other dangers;

                (5)           Lessening or avoiding the hazards to persons and damage to property resulting from the

                               accumulation or run-off of storm or flood waters;

                (6)           Providing adequate light and air;

                (7)           Preventing excessive concentration of population and excessive and wasteful scattering of

                               population or settlement;

                (8)           Promoting such distribution of population, such classification of land uses, and such

                               distribution of land development as will assure adequate provisions for transportation, water

                               flowage, water supply, drainage, sanitation, recreation, soil fertility, food supply, and other

                               public requirements;

                (9)           Protecting the tax base;

              (10)           Protecting property against blight and depreciation;

              (11)           Securing economy in governmental expenditures;

              (12)           Fostering the County's agriculture, recreation, and other industries;

              (13)           Encouraging the most appropriate use of land in the County; and

              (14)           Preserving, protecting, and enhancing historic buildings, places, and districts, all in accordance

                               with the comprehensive plan.

 

WHEREAS Nebraska Revised Reissued Statutes, 1943, Sections 23-114 through 23-114.05 and 23-164 through

23-174.06 as amended, empowers the County to adopt a zoning and subdivision resolution and to provide for its

administration, enforcement, and amendment; and

 

WHEREAS, the Washington County Board of Supervisors deem it in the interest of the public health, safety,

morals, convenience, order, prosperity, and welfare of said County and its present and future residents; and

WHEREAS, the Washington County Board of Supervisors has adopted a Comprehensive Development Plan

pursuant to Neb. R. R. S. 1943, Sections 23-114 through 23-114.03, as amended, and known as Washington

County Comprehensive Development Plan, 2005, as amended; and

 

WHEREAS, the Washington County Planning Commission has recommended the division of the unincorporated

areas of the County into districts and recommended regulations pertaining to such districts consistent with the

adopted Comprehensive Development Plan based on a future land use plan designed to lessen congestion on

roads and highways, to secure safety from fire, panic and other dangers, to provide adequate light and air, to

prevent the overcrowding of land, to avoid undue concentration of population, to conserve agricultural land and

values, to facilitate sewerage, schools, parks, and other public needs; and

 

WHEREAS, the County Planning Commission has given reasonable consideration, among other things, to the

prevailing agricultural and rural characteristics now predominant in the County, to the character of the districts

and their peculiar suitability for the particular permitted uses, with a reasonable understanding of the objective to

conserve the value of lands and improvements while encouraging the development of the most appropriate uses

of land throughout the County; and

 

WHEREAS, the County Planning Commission has made a preliminary report, held public hearings, submitted

its recommended final report to the County Board of Supervisors; and the County Board of Supervisors have given

due public notice of hearings relating to the Comprehensive Development Plan, to the zoning districts,

regulations, subdivision regulations, and restrictions, and has held such public hearings; and

 

WHEREAS, The County Board of Supervisors have deemed it necessary to adopt the Comprehensive

Development Plan, the zoning districts, regulations, subdivision regulations, and restrictions for the purpose of

providing for the harmonious development and orderly expansion of growth, for the orderly extension and

planned arrangements of county roads, utilities, for adequate sanitary facilities, for safe and healthy drinking

water, and for reducing flood damage potentials; and

 

WHEREAS, the requirements of Neb. R.R.S. 1943, Section s 23-114 through 23-124.05, Sections 23-164

through 23-174, and Section 23-174.02, as amended, with regard to the recommendations of the Planning

Commission, the Comprehensive Development Plan, the zoning districts, regulations, subdivision regulations

and restrictions and the subsequent action of the County Board of Supervisors have been met;

 

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF

WASHINGTON COUNTY, NEBRASKA.

 

Article 1:  General Provisions

 

Section 1.01  Short Title.

This Resolution shall be known, cited, and referred to as the "Zoning Regulations of Washington County, Nebraska."

 

Section 1.02  Publication.

This Resolution shall be published in book or pamphlet form together with the zoning district map or maps being a part

hereof, and copies shall be filed with the County Clerk of Washington County.

 

Section 1.03  When Effective.

This Resolution shall be in full force and effect from and after its public hearings, adoption, publications, and filing as

provided by the Nebraska R. R. S., 1943, Sections 23-114.03 to 23-114.05 and 23-164 to 23-174.06.

 

Section 1.04  Conflicts.

All Resolutions or parts of Resolutions in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.

 

Section 1.05  Intent and Purpose.

This Resolution is an updated regulation for Washington County and is consistent with the Washington County

Comprehensive Development Plan and designed for the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals, convenience,

order, prosperity, and welfare of the present and future inhabitants of Washington County, including, among others,

such purposes as developing both urban and non-urban areas; lessening congestion on streets, roads, and highways;

reducing the waste of excessive amounts of roads; securing safety from fire and other dangers; lessening or avoiding the

hazards to persons and damage to property resulting from the accumulation or runoff of storm or flood waters;

providing adequate light and air; preventing excessive concentration of population and excessive and wasteful

scattering of population or settlement; promoting such distribution of population, such classification of land uses, and

such distribution of land development as will assure adequate provisions for transportation, water flowage, water

supply, drainage, sanitation, recreation, soil fertility, food supply, and other public requirements; protecting the tax

base; protecting property against blight and depreciation; securing economy in governmental expenditures; fostering the

County’s agriculture, recreation, and other industries; encouraging the most appropriate use of land in the County,

preserving, protecting, and enhancing historic buildings, places, and districts. These regulations have been made with

reasonable consideration, among other things, to the character of the district, and its peculiar suitability for encouraging

the most appropriate use of land throughout the unincorporated portions of Washington County, Nebraska.

 

Section 1.06 Comprehensive Development Plan Relationship

These zoning regulations are designed to implement various elements of the Comprehensive Development Plan as

required by state statutes. Any amendment to the district regulations or map shall conform to the Comprehensive

Development Plan adopted by the Washington County Board of Supervisors.

 

Section 1.07 Jurisdiction

The provisions of this Resolution shall apply to unincorporated areas of Washington County except that portion thereof

over which cities or villages have been permitted to extend and are exercising zoning jurisdiction; and furthermore at

such time as a city or village adopts a ordinance to exercise zoning or control over an unincorporated area, its

regulations shall supersede those of Washington County.

 

Section 1.08 Highest Standard

Whenever the regulations of this Resolution impose or require higher standards than are required in any other statute,

local Regulations, or regulation, the provisions of the regulations made under authority of this Resolution as provided

by the cited Nebraska R. R. S., 1943 sections shall govern.

 

Section 1.09 General

The zoning regulations set forth by this Resolution within each district shall be minimum regulations applicable

uniformly to each class or kind of building, structure, or land, except as may hereinafter be provided.

 

Section 1.10 Interpretations

In interpreting and applying the provisions of these regulations, they shall be held to be the minimum requirements

for the promotion of public safety, health, convenience, comfort, moral, prosperity, and general welfare. It is not intended

by these regulations to interfere with or abrogate or annul any easements, covenants or other agreements between the

parties, except that if these regulations impose a greater restriction, these regulations shall control.

 

Section 1.11 Scope of the Regulation

No building, structure, or land in the unincorporated areas, excluding the portion of unincorporated areas over which

cities and villages are granted and are exercising zoning jurisdiction in Washington County shall hereafter be used or

occupied and no building or structure or part thereof shall hereafter be erected, constructed, reconstructed, moved, or

structurally altered, except in conformity with the provisions of this Resolution herein specified for the district in which

it is located and:

A.            Every building hereafter erected shall be located on a lot of record.

B.            Only one principal building will be permitted on one lot of record, except in a Residential or Commercial

                Mixed Use Development.

C.            After a County road has been classified as a minimum maintenance road, or is an unimproved road, no permits

                for a residential dwelling, mobile home, or manufactured home shall be issued for construction on any property

                adjoining such classified road.

 

Article 2:  Construction and Definitions

 

Section 2.01  Construction and General Terminology. 

For the purpose of carrying out the intent of this Resolution, words, phrases, and terms shall be deemed to have the

meaning ascribed to them. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future;

words in the singular include the plural and those in the plural include the singular; "or" includes "and", and "and"

includes "or"; and the masculine gender shall include the feminine.

 

2.01.01.     The word "Assessor" shall mean the County Assessor of Washington County.

2.01.02.     The words "Board" shall mean the Board of Supervisors of Washington County.

2.01.03.     The words "Board of Supervisors" shall mean the Board of Supervisors of Washington County.

2.01.04.     The words “Board of Zoning Adjustment” shall mean the Washington County Board of Zoning

                Adjustment

2.01.05.      The word "Building" includes the word "Structure," but shall not include "Temporary Structures".

2.01.06.      The word "Commission" shall mean the Planning Commission of Washington County.

2.01.07.      The word "County" shall mean Washington County.

2.01.08.      The words "Register or Deeds" shall mean the Register of Deeds of Washington County.

2.01.09.      The word "Federal" shall mean the Government of the United States of America.

2.01.10        The word "shall" is mandatory; and the word "may" is permissive.

2.01.11        The word "State" shall mean the State of Nebraska.

2.01.12.      The word "used" includes the words "arranged for, designed for, occupied or intended to be occupied for."

2.01.13        The words "Zoning Map" shall mean the Official Zoning Map of Washington County.

2.01.14        The words “Zoning Administrator” shall mean the Planning Administrator for the Washington County

                 Planning Department.

2.01.15        The word "Inspector" shall mean the Building Inspector of Washington County.

2.01.16        The word "Resolution" shall mean the Zoning Regulation of Washington County.

2.01.17        The word "Comprehensive Plan" shall mean the Washington County Comprehensive Development Plan.

 

Section 2.02 Abbreviations and Acronyms

For purposes of this Resolution this section contains a listing of abbreviations and acronyms used throughout this document.

AU        =                 Animal Unit

CAFO   =                 Confined Animal Feeding Operation

FCC      =                  Federal Communication Commission

kV         =                 Kilovolt

kW        =                 Kilowatt

LFO      =                 Livestock Feeding Operation

NDEQ  =                 Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality or successor department

R.O.W. =                 right-of-way or rights-of-way

USDA   =                 United States Department of Agriculture


 

Section 2.03 Definition of Terms

2.03.01      ABANDONMENT shall mean to cease or discontinue a use or activity without intent to resume as

               distinguished from short-term interruptions such as during periods of remodeling, maintenance, or normal

               periods of vacation or seasonal closure.

 

2.03.02      ABUT, ABUTTING shall mean to border on, being contiguous with or have property or district lines in

               common, including property separated by an alley.  The words “adjoin” and “contiguous” shall mean the same

               as “abut.”

 

2.03.03      ACCESS OR ACCESS WAY shall mean the place, means, or way by which pedestrians and vehicles shall

               have safe, adequate and usable ingress and egress to a property or use as required by this Regulation.

 

2.03.04      ACCESSORY BUILDING shall mean any detached subordinate building that serves a function customarily

               incidental to that of the main building or main use of the premises.  Customary accessory building includes

               farm buildings, garages, carports, and small storage sheds.

 

2.03.05      ACCESSORY STRUCTURE shall mean a detached subordinate structure located on the same lot with the

               principal structure, the use of which is incidental and accessory to that of the principal structure.

 

2.03.06      ACCESSORY USE shall mean a use incidental, related, appropriate and clearly subordinate to the main use

               of the lot or building, which accessory use does not alter the principal use of the subject lot or affect other

               properties in the district.

 

2.03.07      ACRE shall mean a full acre containing 43,560 square feet of area within the property lines of a lot or parcel.

 

2.03.08      ADJACENT shall mean near, close, or abutting; for example, an Industrial District across the street or

               highway from a Residential District shall be considered as "Adjacent".

 

2.03.09      ADULT CABARET shall mean a nightclub, bar, restaurant, or similar establishment that regularly features

               live performances that are characterized by the exposure of specified anatomical areas or by specified sexual

               activities, or films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, or other photographic reproductions in which more

               than 10 percent of the total presentation time is devoted to the showing of material that is characterized by any

               emphasis upon the depiction of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.

 

2.03.10      ADULT COMPANIONSHIP ESTABLISHMENT shall mean an establishment that provides the service of

               engaging in or listening to conversation, talk or discussion between an employee of the establishment and a

               customer, if such service is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on "specified sexual activities" or

               "specified anatomical areas."

 

2.03.11      ADULT ESTABLISHMENT shall mean any business which offers its patrons services or entertainment

               characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, exposing, describing, discussing or relating to "specified

               sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas," including, but without limitation, adult bookstores, adult

               motion picture theaters, saunas, adult companionship establishments, adult health clubs, adult cabarets, adult

               novelty businesses, adult motion picture arcades, adult modeling studios, adult hotel or motel, and adult body

               painting studios.

 

2.03.12      ADULT HOTEL OR MOTEL shall mean a hotel or motel from which minors are specifically excluded from

               patronage and wherein material is presented which is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matter

               depicting, describing or relating to "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas."

 

2.03.13      ADULT MASSAGE PARLOR, HEALTH CLUB shall mean a massage parlor or health club which restricts

               minors by reason of age, and which provides the services of massage, if such service is distinguished or

               characterized by an emphasis on "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas."

 

2.03.14      ADULT MINI-MOTION PICTURE THEATER shall mean a business premises within an enclosed

               building with a capacity for less than 50 persons used for presenting visual-media material if such business as a

               prevailing practice excludes minors by virtue of age, or if said material is distinguished or characterized by an

               emphasis on the depiction or description of "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas" for

               observation by patrons therein.

 

2.03.15      ADULT MOTION PICTURE ARCADE shall mean any place to which the public is permitted or invited

               wherein coin or slug-operated or electronically, electrically or mechanically controlled still or motor picture

               machines, projectors or other image-producing devices are maintained to show images to five or fewer persons

               per machine at any one time, and where the images so displayed are distinguished or characterized by an

               emphasis on depicting or describing "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas."

 

2.03.16      ADULT MOTION PICTURE THEATERS shall mean a business premises within an enclosed building with

               a capacity of 50 or more persons used for presenting visual media material if said business as a prevailing

               practice excludes minors by virtue of age, or if said material is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis

               on the depiction or description of "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas" for observation

               by patrons therein.

 

2.03.17      ADULT NOVELTY BUSINESS shall mean a business that has as a principal activity the sale of devices

               which simulate human genitals or devices, which are designed for sexual stimulation.

 

2.03.18      ADULT SAUNA shall mean a sauna which excludes minors by reason of age, or which provides a steam bath

               or heat bathing room used for the purpose of bathing or relaxation, utilizing steam or hot air as a cleaning,

               relaxing or reducing agent, if the service provided by the sauna is distinguished or characterized by an

               emphasis on "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas."

 

2.03.19      ADVERTISING STRUCTURE shall mean any notice or advertisement, pictorial or otherwise, and all such

               structures used as an outdoor display, regardless of size and shape, for the purposes of making anything

               known, the origin or place of sale of which is not on the property with such Advertising Structure.

 

2.03.20      Aesthetic Zoning shall mean zoning to accomplish a standard of exterior architectural appeal and/or

               neighborhood harmony.

 

2.03.21      AGGREGATE shall mean the mineral materials, such as sand and stone, used in making concrete.

 

2.03.22      AGRICULTURAL AND FARM BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES shall mean any building or structure

               which is necessary or incidental to the normal conduct of a farm including but not limited to residence of the

               operator, residence of hired men, barns, buildings and sheds for housing livestock, poultry and farm

               machinery, buildings for the storage or shelter of grain, hay and other crops, silos, windmills and water storage

               tanks.

 

2.03.23      AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS (see Farming)

 

2.03.24      AGRICULTURE shall mean the use of land for agricultural purposes, by raising, harvesting, and selling

               crops or by the feeding, breeding, management, and sale of, or the produce of, livestock, poultry, fur-bearing

               animals, or honeybees, or for dairying and the sale of dairy products, or any other agricultural or horticultural

               use.

 

2.03.25    AIRPORT shall mean any area used, or is intended to be used, for the taking off and landing of aircraft,

                including helicopters, and any appurtenant areas which are used or are intended to be used for airport buildings

                or facilities, including open spaces, taxiways, and tie-down areas.

 

2.03.26      ALLEY shall mean a minor public service street or public thoroughfare 20 feet or less in width, through a

               block of lots primarily for vehicular service access to the rear or side of properties otherwise abutting on

               another street. Buildings facing an alley shall not be construed as satisfying the requirements of this Regulation

               related to frontage on a dedicated street.

 

2.03.27      ALTERATION shall mean any change, addition or modification in construction or occupancy of an existing

               structure.

 

2.03.28      AMENDMENT shall mean a change in the wording, context, or substance of this Regulation, or an addition

               or deletion or a change in the district boundaries or classifications upon the zoning map.

 

2.03.29      ANIMAL HOSPITAL shall mean a facility where animals or pets are given medical or surgical treatment and

               are cared for during the time of such treatment.  The animals \ pets shall be under the supervision of a

               practicing licensed veterinarian.  Such facilities may include veterinarian’s offices, administrative offices,

               space for examination, surgery and recovery, and for boarding of animals while under treatment. 

 

2.03.30      ANIMAL UNIT (see Livestock Feeding Operation)

 

2.03.31      ANIMALS, DOMESTIC shall mean an animal that is customarily kept for personal use or enjoyment within

               a home.  Household pets shall include, but not be limited to, domestic dogs, domestic cats, domestic tropical

               birds, fish and rodents.

 

2.03.32      ANIMALS, FARM shall mean livestock associated with agricultural operation, commonly kept or raised as a

               part of an agricultural operation including but not limited to horses, cattle, sheep, swine, goats, chickens and

               turkeys.

 

2.03.33      ANTENNA shall mean any attached or external system of wires, poles, rods, reflecting disks or similar

               devices used for the transmission or reception of electromagnetic waves including television, radio and

               telephone communications. 

 

2.03.34      Appearance shall mean the outward aspect visible to the public.

 

2.03.35      APPROPRIATE shall mean the sympathetic, or fitting, to the context of the site and the whole community.

 

2.03.36      Appurtenances shall mean the visible, functional objects accessory to and part of buildings.

 

2.03.37      AQUIFER shall mean a geological unit in which porous and permeable conditions exist and thus are capable

               of bearing and producing usable amounts of water.

 

2.03.38      AQUIFER RECHARGE AREA shall mean an area that has soils and geological features that are conducive

               to allowing significant amounts of surface water to percolate into groundwater.

 

2.03.39      Architectural concept, CHARACTER shall mean the basic aesthetic idea of a building, or group

               of buildings or structures, including the site and landscape development that produces the architectural

               character.

 

2.03.40      Architectural feature shall mean a prominent or significant part or element of a building,

               structure, or site. Architectural features may include special lines, massing, and/or texture.

               1.             Lines shall mean visual elements of the building, either within the façade or on the building edge,

                               which are in a linear form either horizontally or vertically and may be composed of masonry, glass, or

                               other related materials.

               2.             MASs shall pertain to the volume, bulk of a building or structure.

               3.             Texture shall mean the quality of a surface, ranging from mirror finish, smooth, to coarse and

                               unfinished.

 

2.03.41      Architectural style shall mean the characteristic form and detail, as of buildings of a particular

               historic period.

 

2.03.42      ARMOR COAT shall mean a bituminous liquid sprayed on road surfaces to provide a wear surface or dust

               control.  Roads treated with armor coat are not considered as pavement.

 

2.03.43      ASPHALTIC CONCRETE shall mean a dark brown to black cementitious material in which the

               predominating constitutes are bitumens, which occur in nature or are obtained in petroleum processing. 

               Asphalt is a constituent in varying proportions of most crude petroleum and used for paving, roofing, industrial

               and other special purposes.

 

2.03.44      ATTACHED PERMANENTLY shall mean attached to real estate in such a way as to require dismantling,

               cutting away, unbolting from permanent foundation or structural change in such structure in order to relocate it

               to another site.

 

2.03.45      Attractive shall mean having qualities that arouse interest and pleasure in the observer.

 

2.03.46      AUTOMATIC TELLER MACHINE (ATM) shall mean an automated device that performs banking

               or financial functions at a location remote from the controlling financial institution.

 

2.03.47      AUTOMOBILE WRECKING YARD shall mean any lot, or the use of any portion of a lot, for the

               dismantling or wrecking of automobiles, tractors, farm machinery, or other motor vehicles, or for the storage

               or keeping for sale of parts and equipment resulting from such dismantling or wrecking.

 

2.03.48      BASEMENT shall mean a building space partly underground, and having at least one-half of its height,

               measured from its floor to its ceiling, above the average adjoining finished ground grade line.

 

2.03.49      BEACON shall mean any light with one or more beams directed into the atmosphere or directed at one

               or more points not on the same zone lot as the light source; also, any light with one or more beams that rotate or

               move.

 

2.03.50      BED and BREAKFAST INN shall mean a house, or portion thereof, where short-term lodging rooms and

               meals are provided.  The operator of the inn shall live on the premises.

 

2.03.51      Berm shall mean a raised form of earth to provide screening or to improve the aesthetic character.

 

2.03.52      BEST INTERESTS OF COUNTY  shall mean interests of the County at large and not interest of the

               immediate neighborhood.

 

2.03.53      BEST POSSIBLE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES shall mean livestock management techniques and

               practices as set forth by various agencies, including the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality that

               encourage and protect the environment and public.

 

2.03.54      BLOCK shall mean a parcel of land platted into lots and bounded by public streets or by waterways, right-of-ways,

               unplatted land, City-County boundaries, or adjoining property lines.

 

2.03.55      BLOCK FRONTAGE shall mean that section of a block fronting on a street between two intersecting streets

               or other block boundary.

 

2.03.56      BOARDING OR ROOMING HOUSE shall mean a building containing a single dwelling unit and

               provisions for not more than five guests, where lodging is provided with or without meals for compensation.

 

2.03.57      BORROW PIT shall mean any place or premises where dirt, soil, sand, gravel or other material is removed

               below the grade of surrounding land for any purpose other than that necessary and incidental site grading or

               building construction.

 

2.03.58      BROADCASTING TOWER shall mean a structure for the transmission or broadcast of radio, television,

               radar, or microwaves which exceeds the maximum height permitted in the district in which it is located;

               provided, however, that noncommercial radio towers not exceeding 50 feet in height shall not be considered

               broadcast towers.

 

2.03.59      BUFFER shall mean a strip of land established to protect one type of land use from another incompatible land

               use or between a land use and a private or public road.  (Also, see Screening.)

 

2.03.60      BUFFER ZONE shall mean an area of land that separates two zoning districts and/or land uses that acts to

               soften or mitigate the effects of one use on the other.

 

2.03.61      BUILDING shall mean any structure built and maintained for the support, shelter or enclosure of persons,

               animals, chattels, or property of any kind.

 

2.03.62      BUILDING, AREA OF shall mean the sum in square feet of the ground areas occupied by all buildings and

               structures on a lot.

 

2.03.63      BUILDING CODE shall mean the various codes of the County that regulate construction and requires

               building permits, zoning permits, electrical permits, mechanical permits, plumbing permits, and other permits

               to do work regulated by the adopted  codes of the County, and other codes adopted by the County that

               pertain to building construction.

 

2.03.64      BUILDING HEIGHT shall mean the vertical distance above grade to the highest point of the coping of a flat

               roof or to the deck line of a mansard roof, or to the average height of the highest gable of a pitched, hipped,

               or shed roof, measured from the highest adjoining sidewalk or ground surface within a five foot horizontal

               distance at the exterior wall of the building.

 

                                                                     

 

                                                                         Example 1:  Building Height Measurement

 

2.03.65      BUILDING INSPECTOR shall mean the Building Inspector for Washington County, Nebraska.

 

2.03.66      BUILDING, PRINCIPAL shall mean a building within which the main or primary use of the lot

               or premises is located. 

 

2.03.67      BUILDING SETBACK LINE shall mean the minimum distance as prescribed by this Regulation between

               any property line and the closest point of the building line or face of any building or structure related thereto.

 

2.03.68      CALCIUM CHLORIDE shall mean a liquid solution consisting of various percentages of water and calcium

               chloride.  This solution can be applied to the road surface to provide dust control, or mix with the road base

               material in larger ratios to provide road base stabilization.  Roads treated with calcium chloride are not

               considered as pavement.

 

2.03.69      CAMPGROUND shall mean a parcel of land intended for the temporary occupancy of tents, campers, and

               recreational vehicles and which primary purpose is recreational, having open areas that are natural in character.

 

2.03.70      CAR WASH shall mean a building or structure or an area of land with machine or hand operated facilities for

               the cleaning, washing, polishing, or waxing of motor vehicles, not including semi-trailer tractors, buses, and

               commercial fleets.

 

2.03.71      CAR WASH, INDUSTRIAL shall mean a mechanical facility for the washing, waxing and vacuuming of

               heavy trucks and buses.

 

2.03.72      CAREGIVER shall mean one that provides care to an immediate family member.  Immediate family member

               shall be defined as applicant’s grandparents, parents, siblings, children, grandchildren or spouse.

 

2.03.73      CARPORT shall mean a permanent roofed structure with not more than two enclosed sides used or intended

               to be used for motor vehicle shelter and storage.

 

2.03.74      CEMETERY shall mean land used or intended to be used for the burial of the dead and dedicated for such

               purposes, including columbariums, crematoriums, and mausoleums.

 

2.03.75      CENTERLINE shall have the same meaning as "Street or Center Line".

 

2.03.76      CHANNEL shall mean the geographical area within either the natural or artificial banks of a watercourse

               or drainageway.

 

2.03.77      CHARITABLE shall mean a public or semi-public institutional use of a philanthropic, charitable, benevolent,

               religious, or eleemosynary character, but not including sheltering or caring of animals.

 

 

2.03.78      CHILD CARE CENTER shall mean a facility licensed to provide child care for 13 or more children. In

               addition to these regulations, Child Care  Centers shall meet all requirements of the State of Nebraska.

 

2.03.79      CHURCH shall mean a permanently located building commonly used for religious worship fully

               enclosed with walls(including windows and doors) and having a roof and conforming to applicable

               codes and legal requirements.

 

2.03.80      CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT shall mean a development designed to concentrate buildings in specific areas

               on a site to allow the remaining land to be used for recreation, common open space, and the preservation

               of environmentally sensitive areas

 

 

      Example of a Cluster Subdivision

 

2.03.81      COMMERCIAL USES shall mean a business use or activity at a scale greater than home industry

               involving retail or wholesale marketing of goods and services. Examples of commercial uses include

               offices and retail shops.

 

2.03.82      COMMON AREA OR PROPERTY shall mean a parcel or parcels of land, together with the improvements

               thereon, the use and enjoyment of which are shared by the owners of the individual building sites in a Planned

               Development, condominium development, or cluster development.

 

2.03.83      COMMON OPEN SPACE shall mean an area of land or water or combination thereof planned for passive

               or active recreation, but does not include areas utilized for streets, alleys, driveways or private roads, off-street

               parking or loading areas. The area of recreational activities such as swimming pools, tennis courts,

               shuffleboard courts, etc., may be included as common open space.

 

2.03.84      COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT BUILDINGS shall mean buildings housing electrical and mechanical

               equipment necessary for the conduct of a public communications business with or without necessary

               personnel.

 

2.03.85      COMMUNITY CENTER shall mean a place, structure, or other facility used for and providing religious,

               fraternal, social, and/or recreational programs generally open to the public and designed to accommodate and

               serve various segments of the County.

 

2.03.86      COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM shall mean a public water supply system which serves at least

               fifteen service connections used by year round residents or uses, or regularly serves 25 or more year round

               residents or uses.

 

2.03.87      COMPATIBLE USES shall mean a land use that is congruous with, tolerant of, and has no adverse effects on

               existing neighboring uses.  Incompatibility may be affected by pedestrian or vehicular traffic generation,

               volume of goods handled and environmental elements such as noise, dust, odor, air pollution, glare, lighting,

               debris generated, contamination of surface or ground water, aesthetics, vibration, electrical interference, and

               radiation.

 

2.03.88      COMPOSTING shall mean the controlled aerobic, thermophilic or microbial degradation of yard waste to a

               stabilized material resulting from the decomposition of plant matter, forming soil.

 

2.03.89      COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT PLAN shall mean the Comprehensive Development Plan of

               Washington County, Nebraska, as adopted by the County Board of Supervisors, setting forth policies for the

               present and foreseeable future, and meeting the purposes and requirements set forth in Section 23-174.05,

               R.R.S. 1943, as the same may, from time-to-time, be amended.

 

2.03.90      CONDITIONAL USE shall mean a use allowed by the district regulations that would not be appropriate

               generally throughout the entire zoning district without special restrictions. However, said use if controlled as to

               number, size, area, location, relation to the neighborhood or other protective characteristics would not be

               detrimental to the public health, safety, and general welfare.

 

2.03.91      CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT shall mean a permit issued by the Board that authorizes the recipient to

               make conditional use of property in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation and any additional

               conditions placed upon, or required by said permit.

 

2.03.92      CONDOMINIUM shall be as defined in the Nebraska State Statues Section 76-824 - 76-894, the

               Condominium Law, whereby four or more apartments are separately offered for sale.

 

2.03.93      CONFINED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATION, LARGE shall mean a farming operation which meets the

               following minimum numbers:

700 mature dairy cows

125,000 chickens except laying hens (other than liquid manure handling system)

1,000 beef cattle or heifers

82,000 laying hens (other than liquid manure handling system)

2,500 swine (each 55lbs or more)

1,000 veal calves

10,000 swine (each under 55 lb.)

500 horses

30,000 ducks (other than liquid manure handling system)

10,000 sheep

5,000 ducks (liquid manure systems)

55,000 turkeys

30,000 chickens (liquid manure systems)

 

              Any combination of animals shall follow the definition of Animal Units in order to establish the intensity of

              Confined Animal Feeding Operation

 

2.03.94      CONFINED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATION, MEDIUM shall mean an farming operation which meets

               the following minimum numbers:

200 mature dairy cows

37,500 chickens except laying hens (other than liquid manure handling system)

300 beef cattle or heifers

25,000 laying hens (other than liquid manure handling system)

750 swine (each 55lbs or more)

300 veal calves

3,000 swine (each under 55 lb.)

150 horses

10,000 ducks (other than liquid manure handling system)

3,000 sheep or lambs

1,500 ducks (liquid manure systems)

16,500 turkeys

9,000 chickens (liquid manure systems)

 

             Any combination of animals shall follow the definition of Animal Units in order to establish the intensity of

             Confined Animal Feeding Operation

 

2.03.95      CONFINEMENT shall mean totally roofed buildings, which may be open-sided (for ventilation purposes

               only) or completely enclosed on the sides, wherein animals or poultry are housed over solid concrete or dirt

               floors, or slatted (partially open) floors over pits or manure collection areas in pens, stalls, cages, or alleys,

               with or without bedding materials and mechanical ventilation.  The word "confinement" shall not mean the

               temporary confined feeding of livestock during seasonal adverse weather.

 

2.03.96      CONFLICTING LAND USE shall mean the use of property that transfers over neighboring property lines

               negative economic or environmental effects. This includes, but is not limited to, noise, vibration, odor, dust,

               glare, smoke, pollution, water vapor, mismatched land uses and/or density, height, mass, mismatched layout of

               adjacent uses, loss of privacy, and unsightly views.

 

2.03.97      CONSERVATION AREAS shall mean environmentally sensitive and valuable lands protected from any

               activity that would significantly alter their ecological integrity, balance or character, except in overriding

               public interest, including but not limited to: wetlands, floodways, flood plains, drainage ways, river or stream

               banks, and areas of significant biological productivity or uniqueness.

 

2.03.98      CONSERVATION EASEMENT shall mean an easement granting a right or interest in real property that is

               appropriate to retaining land or water areas predominantly in their natural, scenic, open, or wooded condition

               and retaining such areas as suitable habitat for fish, plants, or wildlife, or maintaining existing land uses.

 

2.03.99      CONVENIENCE STORE shall mean a one-story, retail store containing less than 2,000 square feet of gross

               floor area that is designed and stocked to sell primarily food, beverages, and other household supplies to

               customers who purchase only a relatively few items (in contrast to a "supermarket.")  It is dependent on, and is

               designed to attract and accommodate large volumes of stop-and-go traffic.  (Also, see Self-service Station.)

 

2.03.100   COUNTRY CLUB shall mean buildings and facilities owned and operated by a corporation or association of

               persons for social and recreational purposes.  The affairs and management of such club are conducted by a                  

               board of directors, executive committee, or similar body chosen by the members.  It is designed to serve food

               and alcoholic beverages on such premises to members and their guests, provided that the serving of food 

               and alcoholic beverages is secondary to some other principal purpose of the association or corporation. 

               Customary country clubs include, but are not limited to: swimming facilities, tennis courts and golf courses.

 

2.03.101   COURT shall mean an open, unoccupied space, other than a yard, on the same lot with a building or buildings

               and bounded on two or more sides by such buildings.

                        Types of Courts

                                                                                                                             

 

               Example of a Cul-De-Sac                                                                             

2.03.102   CUL-DE-SAC shall mean a public or private road that has only one outlet for vehicular traffic and terminates

               in a vehicular turn-around.

 

2.03.103   DAIRY FARM shall mean any place or premises upon which milk is produced for sale or other distribution.

 

2.03.104   DENSITY shall mean the number of dwelling units per gross acre of land.

 

2.03.105   DEVELOPMENT shall mean any manmade change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not

               limited to buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, or drilling

               operations for which necessary permits may be required.

 

2.03.106   DEVELOPMENT REVIEW shall mean the review, by the County of subdivision plats, site plans, and

               rezoning requests, permit review, etc.

 

2.03.107   DIRT SURFACE shall mean (as pertains to roads) roads typically found in non-residential areas as they only

               provide minimum design characteristics.

 

2.03.108   DOWNZONING shall mean a change in zoning classification of land to a less intensive or more restrictive

               district such as from commercial district to residential district or from a multiple family residential district to

               single family residential district.

 

2.03.109   DRAINAGE WAY shall mean any depression two feet or more below the surrounding land serving to give

               direction to a current of water less than nine months of the year, having a bed and well-defined banks. In the

               event of doubt as to whether a depression is a watercourse or drainage way, it shall be presumed to be a

               watercourse.

 

2.03.110   DRIVE-IN FACILITY shall mean an establishment where customers can be served without leaving the

               confinement of their vehicle.

 

2.03.111   DRIVEWAY shall mean any vehicular access to an off-street parking or loading facility.

 

2.03.112   DUMP shall mean a place used for the disposal, abandonment, discarding by burial, incineration, or by any

               other means for any garbage, sewage, trash, refuse, rubble, waste material, offal or dead animals. Such use

               shall not involve any industrial or commercial process.

 

2.03.113   DWELLING shall mean any building or portion thereof that is designed and used exclusively for single-

               family residential occupancy, excluding mobile\ manufactured homes.

 

2.03.114   DWELLING, MANUFACTURED HOME  For the purposes of this Regulation, a manufactured home shall

               bear an appropriate seal which indicates that said home was constructed in accordance with the standards of the

               Department of Health or the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. All manufactured

               homes shall be located and installed according to the same standards for foundation system, permanent utility

               connections, setback, and minimum square footage, which would apply to a site‑built, single family dwelling

               on the same lot, plus the following:

               A.            The home shall have no less than 900 square feet of floor area, above grade, for single story

                               construction;

               B.            The home shall have no less than an 18 foot exterior width;

               C.            The roof shall be pitched with a minimum vertical rise of two and one-half inches for each 12 inches

                              of horizontal run;

               D.            The exterior material shall be of a color, material and scale comparable with those existing in

                               residential site-built, single family construction;

               E.             The home shall have a non-reflective roof material which is or simulates asphalt or wood shingles,

                                standing seam metal roofing, tile, or rock;

               F.             The home shall be placed on a continuous permanent foundation and have wheels, axles, transporting

                               lights, and removable towing apparatus removed, and

               G.            The home shall meet and maintain the same standards that are uniformly applied to all single-family

                               dwellings in the zoning district.

               H.            Permanent foundation: Base on which building rests to be constructed from either poured concrete

                               or laid masonry block or brick on a footing to be placed a minimum of 42 inches below the final ground

                               level.

 

2.03.115   DWELLING, MOBILE HOME shall mean any prefabricated structure, composed of one or more parts, used

                for living and sleeping purposes, shipped or moved in essentially a complete condition and mounted on

                wheels, skids, rollers, jacks blocks, horses, skirting or a permanent or temporary foundation or any

                prefabricated structure which has been or reasonably can be equipped with wheels or other devices

                for transporting the structure from place to place, whether by motive power or other means. The term mobile home

                shall include trailer home and camp car, but the definition shall not apply to any vehicle lawfully operated

                upon fixed rails.

 

2.03.116   DWELLING, MODULAR (Is considered a conventional type single-family dwelling). Any prefabricated

               structure, used for dwelling purposes, moved on to a site in an essentially complete constructed condition, in

               one or more parts, and when completed is a single family unit on a permanent foundation, attached to the

               foundation with permanent connections. To be a modular home it shall meet or be equivalent to the

               construction criteria as defined by the Nebraska State Department of Health and Human Services under the

               authority granted by Section 71-1555 through 71-1567 Revised Statutes of Nebraska 1943, in addition to any

               amendments thereto.  Prefabricated homes that do not meet the above standards shall be considered as either a

               mobile or manufactured home.

 

2.03.117   DWELLING, MULTIPLE FAMILY shall mean a building or buildings designed and used for occupancy by

                three or more families, all living independently of each other and having separate kitchen and toilet facilities

                for each family.

 

2.03.118   DWELLING, SINGLE FAMILY (DETACHED) a building containing one dwelling unit and that is not

                attached to any other dwelling by any means and is surrounded by open space or yards.

 

2.03.119   DWELLING, SINGLE-FAMILY (ATTACHED) shall mean a one-family dwelling unit that is attached to

               one additional single-family dwelling. Said dwelling units are separated by an un-pierced common wall

               through the center of the structure that also sits along the property line separating ownership of the structure.

 

2.03.120   DWELLING, TWO FAMILY (DUPLEX) shall mean a building designed or used exclusively for the

               occupancy of two families living independently of each other and having separate kitchen and toilet facilities

               for each family.

 

2.03.121   DWELLING UNIT shall mean one or more rooms, designed, occupied, or intended for occupancy as a

               separate living quarter, with cooking, sleeping, and sanitary facilities provided within the dwelling unit for the

               exclusive use of a single family maintaining a household.

 

2.03.122   EASEMENT shall mean a space, lot, or parcel of land reserved for or used for public utilities or public or

               private uses.

 

2.03.123   ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION SUBSTATION shall mean an electric substation with a primary voltage of

               less than 161 KV, with distribution circuits served therefrom.

 

2.03.124   ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION SUBSTATION shall mean an electric transformation or switching station

               with a primary voltage of more than 161 KV without distribution circuits served therefrom.

 

2.03.125   ENCROACHMENT shall mean advancement or intrusion beyond the lines or limits as designated

               and established by this Regulation, and to infringe or trespass into or upon the possession or right of others without

               permission.

 

2.03.126   ENLARGEMENT shall mean the expansion of a building, structure, or use in volume, size, area, height,

               length, width, depth, capacity, ground coverage, or in number.

 

2.03.127   Environmentally Controlled HOUSING shall mean any livestock operation meeting the

               definition of a Livestock Feeding Operation (LFO) and is contained within a roofed building and may

               or may not have open sides and contains floors which are hard surfaced, earthen, slatted or other type of floor. The

               facility is capable of maintaining and regulating the environment in which the livestock are kept.

 

2.03.128   EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION shall mean the area beyond the corporate limits, in which a city

               or village has been granted the powers by the state to exercise zoning and building regulations, and is

               exercising such powers.

 

2.03.129   FACADE shall mean the exterior wall of a building exposed to public view from the building's exterior.

 

2.03.130   FAMILY shall mean a group of individuals not necessarily related by blood, marriage, adoption,

               or guardianship living together in a dwelling unit as a single housekeeping unit under a common housekeeping

               management plan based on a intentionally structured relationship providing organization and stability.

 

2.03.131   FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME I shall mean a child care operation in the provider’s place of residence

               which serves between four and eight children at any one time. A Family Child Care Home I provider may be

               approved to serve no more than two additional school-age children during non-school hours. In addition to

               these regulations, a Child Care Home shall meet requirements of the State of Nebraska.

 

2.03.132   FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME II shall mean a child care operation either in the provider’s place of

               residence or a site other than the residence, serving twelve or fewer children at any one time. In addition to

               these regulations, a Child Care Home shall meet requirements of the State of Nebraska.

 

2.03.133   FARM shall mean a parcel of land used for agricultural activities.

 

2.03.134   FEED LOT shall mean the confinement of horses, sheep, pigs, and other food animals in buildings, lots, pens,

               pools or ponds which normally are not used for raising crops or for grazing animals.

 

2.03.135   FLOOR AREA whenever the term "floor area" is used in this Regulation as a basis for requiring off-street

               parking for any structure, it shall be assumed that, unless otherwise stated, said floor area applies not only to

               the ground floor area but also to any additional stories of said structure. All horizontal dimensions shall be

               taken from the exterior faces of walls.

 

2.03.136   FRONTAGE shall mean that portion of a parcel of property that abuts a dedicated public street or highway.

 

2.03.137   GARAGE, REPAIR shall mean a building designed and used for the storage, care, repair, or refinishing of

               motor vehicles including both minor and major mechanical overhauling, paint, and body work.  (Also, see

               Service Station.)

 

2.03.138   GARBAGE shall mean any waste food material of an animal or vegetable nature, including waste that may be

               used for the fattening of livestock.

 

2.03.139   GRAVEL AND CRUSHED ROCK shall mean (as pertains to roads) materials added to the surface of dirt

               roads to provide all weather travel.  This type of road surface is usually found in the rural areas of the County

               and generally less traveled in nature.

 

2.03.140   GREENHOUSE, PRIVATE shall mean a building whose roof and sides are made largely of glass or other

               transparent or translucent material and in which the temperature and humidity can be regulated for the

               cultivation of flowers or plants for personal enjoyment.

 

2.03.141   GREENHOUSE, PUBLIC OR RETAIL shall mean a building whose roof and sides are made largely of

               glass or other transparent or translucent material and in which the temperature and humidity can be regulated

               for the cultivation of flowers or plants for subsequent sale.  Also refer to Nursery.

 

2.03.142   GROUP CARE HOME shall mean a home which is operated under the auspices of an organization which is

                responsible for providing social services, administration, direction, and control for the home which is designed

                to provide twenty-four hour care for individuals in a residential setting.

 

2.03.143   GROUP HOME FOR THE HANDICAPPED shall mean a dwelling with resident staff shared by four or

               more handicapped persons who live together as a single housekeeping unit and in a long term, family-like

               environment in which staff persons provide care, education, and participation in community activities for the

               residents with the primary goal of enabling the residents to live as independently as possible in order to reach

               their maximum potential.  As used herein, the term "handicapped" shall mean having:  (1) A physical or

               mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities so that such

               person is incapable of living independently; (2) A record of having such an impairment; or (3) Being r3egarded as

               having such impairment.

 

2.03.144   HOLDING POND shall mean an impoundment made by constructing an excavated pit, dam, embankment, or

               combination of these for temporary storage of liquid livestock wastes.

 

2.03.145   HOME OCCUPATION, GENERAL shall mean a business, occupation, trade or profession conducted for

               gain and carried on within a residential dwelling by the resident thereof.

 

2.03.146   HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION shall mean a private, nonprofit corporation or association of homeowners

               of properties in a fixed area, established for the purpose of owning, operating, and maintaining various

               common properties and facilities.

 

2.03.147   HOTEL shall mean a building or portion thereof, or a group of buildings, offering transient lodging

               accommodations on a daily rate to the general public and providing services associated with restaurants,

               meeting rooms, and recreational facilities.  The word "hotel" includes motel, inn, automobile court, motor inn,

               motor lodge, motor court, tourist court, motor hotel.

 

2.03.148   INDIVIDUAL SEPTIC SYSTEM shall mean a wastewater treatment system for a dwelling that has a septic

               tank and absorption system.

 

2.03.149   INDUSTRIAL PARK shall mean a planned coordinated development of a tract of land with two or more

               separate industrial buildings.  The development is planned, designed, constructed, and managed on an

               integrated and coordinated basis with an enforceable master plan and/or covenants, conditions, and restrictions

               with special attention to on-site vehicular circulation, parking, utility needs, building design, and orientation

               and open space.

 

2.03.150   INDUSTRY shall mean the manufacture, fabrication, processing reduction or destruction of any article,

               substance or commodity, or any other treatment thereof in such a manner as to change the form, character, or

               appearance thereof and including storage elevators, truck storage yards, warehouses, wholesale storage and

               other similar types of enterprise.

 

2.03.151   JUNK shall mean any worn-out, cast-off, old, or discarded articles of scrap, copper, brass, iron, steel, rope,

               rags, batteries, paper, trash, rubber, debris, waste, dismantled or wrecked automobiles, or parts thereof, and

               other old or scrap ferrous or nonferrous material.

 

2.03.152   JUNK YARD shall mean any lot, land, parcel, building, or structure or part thereof for storage, collection,

               purchase, sale, salvage, or disposal of machinery, farm machinery, and including motor vehicles, parts and

               equipment that result from dismantling or wrecking, or keeping of junk, including scrap metals or other scrap

               materials, with no burning permitted. For motor vehicles, see "Automobile Wrecking Yard".

 

2.03.153   KENNEL, COMMERCIAL shall mean any building, enclosure, other outdoor facilities such as play

               areas, fenced-in areas and runs, or land upon which four or more dogs are kept for purposes of housing, grooming,

               breeding, boarding, training or sale, for a fee or compensation.  A commercial kennel shall have an occupied

               on-site residence on the same tract (legal description) as the proposed kennel prior to application to the

               County for a commercial kennel (kennel, commercial) conditional use permit. (revised 03-25-2008)

 

2.03.154   LAGOON shall mean a wastewater treatment facility that is a shallow, artificial pond where sunlight, bacterial

               action, and oxygen interact to restore wastewater to a reasonable state of purity. This includes both human and

               livestock wastes. All lagoons shall meet the minimum design criteria established by the Nebraska Department

               of Environmental Quality and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. All lagoons shall have

               the proper permits approved prior to starting construction.

 

2.03.155   LANDFILL shall mean a disposal site employing a method of disposing solid wastes (including junk) in a

               manner that minimizes environmental hazards in accordance with state and federal requirements.

 

2.03.156   LANDSCAPING shall include the original planting of suitable vegetation in conformity with the

               requirements of this Regulation and the continued maintenance thereof.

 

2.03.157   LIQUID MANURE shall mean that type of livestock waste that is in liquid form, collected in liquid manure

               pits or lagoons.

 

2.03.158   LIQUID MANURE STORAGE PITS shall mean earthen or lined pits wholly or partially beneath a semi or

                totally housed (ECH) livestock operation or at some removed location used to collect waste production.

 

2.03.159   LIVESTOCK FEEDING OPERATION (LFO) shall mean the feeding, farrowing, or raising cattle, swine,

               sheep, poultry, or other livestock, in a confined area where grazing is not possible, and where the confined area

               is for more than six months in any one calendar year, and where the number of animals so maintained exceeds

               300 Animal Units as defined below.  The confined area of the LFO shall include the pens, corrals, sheds,

               buildings, feed storage areas, waste disposal ponds, and related facilities.  Such facilities shall be constructed

               and operated in conformance with applicable County, state, and federal regulations.  Two or more LFO's under

               common ownership are deemed to be a single LFO if they are adjacent to each other or if they utilize a

               common area or system for the disposal of livestock wastes.  Animal Units (A.U.) are defined as follows:

               One A.U.= One (1) Cow/Calf combination

               One A.U.= One (1) Slaughter, Feeder Cattle;

               One A.U.= One-half  (1/2) Horse;

               One A.U.= Seven Tenths (.7) Mature Dairy Cattle;

               One A.U.= Two and One Half (2.5) Swine (55 pounds or more);

               One A.U.= Twenty Five (25) Weaned Pigs (less than 55 pounds);

               One A.U.= Two (2) Sows with Litters;

               One A.U.= Ten (10) Sheep;

               One A.U.= One Hundred (100) Chickens;

               One A.U.= Fifty (50) Turkeys;

               One A.U.= Five (5) Ducks.

 

2.03.160   LIVESTOCK WASTES shall mean animal and poultry excreta and associated feed losses, bedding, spillage,

               or overflow from watering systems, wash and flushing waters, sprinkling waters from livestock cooling,

               precipitation polluted by falling on or flowing onto a livestock operation, and other materials polluted by

               livestock or their direct product.

 

2.03.161   LOADING SPACE shall mean an off-street space or berth on the same lot with a main building, or

               contiguous to a group of buildings, for the temporary parking of commercial vehicles while loading or

               unloading, and which abuts a street, alley, or other appropriate means of ingress and egress.

 

2.03.162   LOT shall mean a parcel or tract of land which is or may be occupied by a use herein permitted, together with

                yards, and other open spaces herein required, that has frontage upon a street, and is a part of a recorded

                subdivision plat or has been recorded prior to the adoption of the Regulation; or a parcel of real property

                delineated on an approved record of survey, lot split or sub-parceling map as filed in the office of the Register

                of Deeds and abutting at least one public street or right-of-way.

 

2.03.163   LOT AREA shall mean the total area, on a horizontal plane, within the lot lines of a lot.

 

2.03.164   LOT, CORNER shall mean a lot located at the intersection of two or more streets.  The setbacks for a front yard

               shall be met on all abutting streets.

 

2.03.165   LOT COVERAGE shall mean the portion of a lot or building site which is occupied by any building or structure,

               excepting paved areas, walks and swimming pools, regardless of whether said building or structure is intended

               for human occupancy or not.                                              

  

 

                                      Types of Lots  

 

2.03.166   LOT DEPTH shall mean the horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines measured in the mean

               direction of the side lot lines.

 

2.03.167   LOT, DOUBLE FRONTAGE shall mean a lot that fronts upon two parallel streets or that fronts upon two

               streets that do not intersect at the boundaries of the lot.

 

2.03.168   LOT, FLAG shall mean a lot with frontage and access provided to the bulk of the lot by means of a narrow

               corridor.

 

2.03.169   LOT, FRONTAGE shall mean the length of the front lot line measured at the street right-of-way line.  On

               corner lots, each side abutting the street is considered the frontage.

 

2.03.170   LOT, INTERIOR shall mean a lot other than a corner or double frontage lot.

 

2.03.171   LOT LINE shall mean the property line bounding a lot.

 

2.03.172   LOT LINE, FRONT shall mean the property line abutting a street.

 

2.03.173   LOT LINE, REAR shall mean a lot line not abutting a street that is opposite and most distant from the front

               lot line.

 

2.03.174   LOT LINE, SIDE shall mean any lot line not a front lot line or rear lot line.

 

2.03.175   LOT, NONCONFORMING shall mean a lot having less area or dimension than required in the district it is

               located and lawfully created prior to the zoning thereof and whereby the larger area or dimension requirements

               were established; or any lot, other than one shown on a plat recorded in the office of the County Register of

               Deeds which does not abut a public road or public right-of-way and which was lawfully created prior to the

               effective date of this Regulation.

 

2.03.176   LOT OF RECORD shall mean a lot held in separate ownership as shown on the records of the County

               Register of Deeds at the time of the passage of a regulation establishing the zoning district in which the lot is

               located.

 

2.03.177   LOT WIDTH shall mean the average horizontal distance between the side lot lines, measured at right angles

               to the lot depth at a point midway between the front and rear lot lines.

 

2.03.178   MANUFACTURED HOME PARK shall mean a parcel of land containing spaces for the placement of

               manufactured housing to be used for dwelling purposes and where manufactured home spaces are not sold. 

               The term "manufactured home park" does not include sales lots on which new or used manufactured homes are

               parked for the purposes of storage, inspection or sale.

 

2.03.179   MANUFACTURED HOME SUBDIVISION shall mean ground subdivided o be used for the purpose of

               selling lots for occupancy by manufactured homes.

 

2.03.180   MANUFACTURED HOUSING shall mean factory built, single-family structures that meet the Housing and

               Urban Development (HUD) code.

 

2.03.181   MAP, OFFICIAL ZONING DISTRICT shall mean a map delineating the boundaries of zoning districts that,

               along with the zoning text, is officially adopted by the Washington County Board of Supervisors.

 

2.03.182   MOTOR VEHICLE shall mean every self-propelled device used for transportation of people or goods over

               land surfaces and requiring licensing as a motor vehicles.

 

2.03.183   NON-CONFORMING BUILDING shall mean a building, or portion thereof, lawful when established but

               which does not conform to a subsequently adopted zoning regulation.

 

2.03.184   NON-CONFORMING USE shall mean a use lawful when established but which does not conform to a

               subsequently adopted zoning regulation.

 

2.03.185   NUISANCE shall mean anything that interferes with the use or enjoyment of property, endangers personal

               health or safety, or is offensive to the senses such as noise, dust, odor, smoke, gas, pollution, congestion,

               lighting and litter.

 

2.03.186   NURSERY shall mean the use of a premises for the propagation, cultivation, and growth of trees, shrubs,

               plants, vines, and the like from seed or stock, and the sale thereof, and including the sale of trees, shrubs,

               plants, vines, and the like purchased elsewhere and transplanted into the soil of the premises.  In connection

               with the sale of plants, such fungicides, insecticides, chemicals, peat moss, humus, mulches, and fertilizers as

               are intended to be used in preserving the life and health of the plants may be sold.

 

2.03.187   OFF-STREET PARKING SPACE shall mean a temporary storage area for a motor vehicle that is directly

               accessible to an access aisle and that is not located on a dedicated street right-of-way.  Access aisle refers to

               the traveled way by which motor vehicles enter and depart parking spaces.

 

2.03.188   OPEN LOTS shall mean pens or similar concentrated areas, including small shed-type areas or open-front

                buildings, with dirt, concrete, paved or hard surfaces, wherein animals or poultry are exposed to the outside

                environment except for possible small portions affording some protection by windbreaks or small shed-type

                areas.

 

2.03.189   OPEN SPACE shall mean a parcel of land, together with the improvements thereon, primarily set aside for

               recreational use and enjoyment, exclusive of land areas used for streets, alleys, roads, driveways, parking

               areas, structures, and buildings.

 

2.03.190   OVERLAY DISTRICT shall mean a district in which additional requirements will act in conjunction with the

               underlying zoning district. The original zoning district designation does not change.

 

2.03.191   OWNER shall mean an individual, firm, association, syndicate, partnership or corporation having sufficient

               proprietary interest to seek development of land.

 

2.03.192   PARK shall mean a tract of land, designated and used by the public for active and passive recreation.

 

2.03.193   PARKING AREA, PRIVATE shall mean an area, other than a street, used for the parking of motor vehicles

               capable of moving under their own power and restricted from general public use.

 

2.03.194   PARKING AREA, PUBLIC shall mean an area, other than a private parking area or street used for the

               parking of motor vehicles capable of moving under their own power, either free or for remuneration.

 

2.03.195   PARKING SPACE, AUTOMOBILE shall mean an area, other than a street or alley, reserved for the parking

               of an automobile, such space having a dimension not less than eight and one-half feet by 20 feet, plus such

               additional area as is necessary to afford adequate ingress and egress.

 

2.03.196   PAVEMENT (PAVED) shall mean a created surface, such as brick, stone, Portland cement concrete or

               asphalt placed on the land to facilitate passage of people or vehicles.  Asphaltic concrete and Portland cement

               concrete are considered as pavement and or paved.

 

2.03.197   PERFORMANCE GUARANTEE shall mean a financial guarantee to ensure that all improvements,

               facilities, or work required by these Regulations will be completed in compliance with these Regulations as

               well as with approved plans and specifications of a development

 

2.03.198   PERMANENTLY ATTACHED shall mean connected to real estate in such a way as to require dismantling,

               cutting away, or unbolting in order to remove, relocate, or replace.

 

2.03.199   PERMANENT FOUNDATION  shall mean a base constructed from either poured concrete or laid masonry

               rock or brick and placed on a footing upon which a building or structure is permanently attached. 

               Additionally, the foundation must meet the County’s building codes.

 

2.03.200   PERMITTED USE shall mean any land use allowed without condition within a zoning district.

 

2.03.201   PERSON shall mean a corporation, company, association, society, firm, partnership or joint stock company,

               as well as a individual, a state, and all political subdivisions of a state or any agency or instrumentality thereof.

 

2.03.202   PLANNED DEVELOPMENT shall mean a development designed to provide for an unusual or different

               arrangement of residential, business, or industrial uses in accordance with an approved development plan.

 

2.03.203   PLAT shall mean a map showing the location, boundaries, and legal description of individual properties and

               streets.

 

2.03.204   PORTLAND CEMENT CONCRETE shall mean an aggregate with cement binder, characterized by

               gray\white color.  Relatively smooth, uniform concrete surface having few exposed aggregates.  Each country

               has its own standard for Portland cement.  The United States, including Washington County, uses the

               specification prepared by the American Society for Testing and Materials – ASTM C-150 Standard

               Specification for Portland cement.

 

2.03.205   POULTRY, COMMERCIAL FEEDING shall mean a poultry commercial feed lot, whether the confined

               feeding operations are enclosed or outdoors.

 

2.03.206   PRIVATE CLUB shall mean a building, part of a building, and related facilities owned or operated by a

               corporation, association, or a group of individuals established for the fraternal, social, educational, recreational

               or cultural enrichment of its members and not primarily for profit and whose members pay dues and meet

               certain qualifications for membership.  A private club may include the serving of food and meals on said

               premises while providing adequate dining room space and kitchen facilities. A private club may include the

               sale of alcoholic beverages to members and their guests provided the activity is secondary and incidental to the

               promotion of some common objective by the organization; and, said sale of alcoholic beverages is in complete

               compliance with all local, state and federal laws.

 

2.03.207   PRIVATE WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM shall mean ground water used as drinking water, which is not

               included under public drinking water supply (i.e., not operated as a public water supply system) and not a

               private well serving a single residence or principal use. (revised 06-23-2009)

 

2.03.208  PRIVATE WELL shall mean a water well serving a single use such as a single-family residence or permitted

                use or conditional use within a zoning district. (added 06-23-2009)

 

2.03.209   PROHIBITED USE shall mean any use of land, other than nonconforming, which is not listed as a permitted

               use or conditional use within a zoning district.

 

2.03.210   PROMOTIONAL DEVICE shall mean any sign intended to be displayed either with or without a frame,

               with or without characters, letters, illustrations, or other material, on a fabric of any kind.  National flags, flags

               of political subdivisions, or symbolic flags of any institutions or business shall be considered a promotional

               device for the purpose of this definition.  Banners, pennants, inflatable characters, streamers, or fringe-type

               ribbons or piping, shall be considered as a promotional device.

 

2.03.211   PUBLIC UTILITY shall mean any business that furnishes the general public telephone service, telegraph

               service, electricity, natural gas, water and sewer, or any other business so affecting the public interest as to be

               subject to the supervision or regulation by an agency of the state or federal government.

 

2.03.212   PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM shall mean a water supply system designed to provide the public

               water for human consumption if such system has at least fifteen service connections or regularly serves at least

               twenty-five individuals. Public water supply system includes, but is not limited to: a) any collection, treatment,

               storage, or distribution facilities under control of the operator of such system and used primarily in connection

               with such system; and b) any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such control which are used

               primarily in connection with such system.

 

2.03.213   QUARRY shall mean a place where rock, ore, stone, dirt, gravel and similar materials are excavated for sale

               or for off-tract use.  A quarry includes rock crushing, asphalt plants and similar activities.

 

2.03.214   RECREATION, ACTIVE shall mean leisure-time activities, usually of a formal nature and often performed

               with others, requiring equipment and taking place at prescribed places, sites or fields.

 

2.03.215   RECREATION, PASSIVE shall mean leisure-time activities that involve relatively inactive or less energetic

               activities, such as walking, sitting, picnicking, card games, chess, checkers and similar table games.  This

               includes open space for nature, and areas for nature walks and observation.

 

2.03.216   RECREATIONAL VEHICLE (RV) shall mean a vehicular unit, primarily designed as a temporary living

               quarters for recreational camping or travel use having either its own power or designed to be mounted on or

               drawn by a motor vehicle.  Recreational vehicles include, but are not limited to, motor coach homes, truck

               camper, travel trailer, automobile trailer, camping trailer, converted buses and trucks, boats, boat trailers, van

               conversions and fifth wheel.

 

2.03.217   RECREATIONAL VEHICLE (RV) PARK shall mean a tract of land upon which two or more recreational

               vehicle sites are located, established, or maintained for occupancy by recreational vehicles of the general

               public as temporary living quarters for recreation or vacation purposes by campers, vacationers, or travelers.

 

2.03.218   RESIDENCE shall mean a home abode or place where an individual is actually living at a specific point in

               time.

 

2.03.219   RESTAURANT shall mean a public eating establishment at which the primary function is the preparation and

               serving of food primarily to persons seated within the building.

 

2.03.220   RESTAURANT, TAKE-OUT shall mean an establishment where food and\or beverages are sold in a form

               ready for consumption, where all or a significant portion of the consumption takes place, or is designed to take

               place, outside the confines of the restaurant, and where ordering and pick-up of food may take place from an

               automobile

 

2.03.221   RESTAURANT, FAST FOOD shall mean an establishment whose principal business is the sale of food

               and/or beverages in ready-to-consume servings, for consumption either within the establishment, for carry-out,

               or drive-in; and where foods are/or beverages are usually served in paper, plastic, or other disposable

               containers.

 

2.03.222   RETAIL SALES shall mean establishments engaged in selling goods or merchandise to the general public for

               personal or household consumption and rendering services incidental to the sale of such goods.

 

2.03.223   REZONING shall mean an amendment to or change in the zoning regulations either to the text, the map, or

               both.

 

2.03.224   RIGHT-OF-WAY shall mean an area or strip of land acquired by reservation, dedication, forced dedication,

               prescription, or condemnation and intended to be occupied by a road, crosswalk, railroad, electric transmission

               lines, oil or gas pipeline, water line, sanitary storm sewer, and other similar uses.

 

2.03.225   ROAD, PRIVATE shall mean access, other than driveways, open to vehicular ingress and egress established

               for the benefit of certain, adjacent properties.

 

2.03.226   ROAD, PUBLIC shall mean all public right-of-way reserved or dedicated for street traffic. 

 

2.03.227   ROADSIDE STAND shall mean a temporary structure or vehicle offering agricultural products, produced on

               the premises, for sale.

 

2.03.228   SCHOOL, DAY, PRE-, OR NURSERY shall mean a school or center for children under school age, whether

               licensed as a day care center or not, approved by the Nebraska State Fire Marshall as being in safety

               conformance with the National Fire Protection Association, Pamphlet 101, known as the Life Safety Code and

               approved by the Nebraska Department of Health and Welfare as meeting their health and welfare standards.

 

2.03.229   SCREENING shall mean a method by which a view of one site from another adjacent site is shielded,

               concealed, or hidden during all seasons of the year and may include fences, walls, hedges, beams, densely

               planted vegetation or other features.  (Also, see Buffer.)

 

2.03.230   SELF-SERVICE STATION shall mean an establishment where motor fuels are stored and dispensed into the

               fuel tanks of motor vehicles by persons other than the service station attendant and may include facilities

               available for the sale of other retail products.

 

2.03.231   SELF-SERVICE STORAGE FACILITY shall mean a building or group of buildings containing individual,

               compartmentalized, and controlled access stalls or lockers for storage.

 

2.03.232   SERVICE STATIONS shall mean buildings and premises where the primary use is the supply and dispensing

               at retail of motor fuels, lubricants, batteries, tires, and motor vehicle accessories and where light maintenance

               activities such as engine tune-ups, lubrications, and washing may be conducted, but not including heavy

               maintenance and repair such as engine overhauls, painting, and body repair.

 

2.03.233   SETBACK LINE  shall mean the line that is the required minimum distance from any lot line and that

               establishes the area within which a building \ structure can be placed.

 

2.03.234   SIGHT TRIANGLE shall mean an area at a street or road intersection in which nothing shall be

               erected, placed, planted, or allowed to grow in such a manner as to visually impair the view of traffic

               (pedestrian and motor vehicular) at an intersection as established within these Regulations.  Refer to

              Article 3 – General Regulations.  (See also visual obstruction).

 

2.03.235   SIGN shall mean and include any outdoor display, declaration, device, figure, drawing, illustration,

               message, placard, poster, billboard, insignia, or other things which are designed, intended, or used for

               direction, information, identification, or to advertise, to inform, or to promote any business, product

               activity, service, or any interest.

                            

2.03.236   SIGN, ARCHITECTURAL CANOPY shall mean an

               enclosed, illuminated (backlit awning) or non-illuminated

               structure that is attached to the wall of a building with the face

               of the sign approximately parallel to the wall and with the

               sign's area integrated into its surface.

 

2.03.237   SIGN AREA shall mean the entire face of a sign, including the

               advertising surface and any framing, trim, or molding, but not

               including the supporting structure.  If both sides of a sign

               structure are used, then the sign area shall include each side.

 

2.03.238   SIGN, BILLBOARD shall mean a sign which directs attention

               to a business, commodity, service or entertainment conducted,

               sold or offered at a location other than the premises on which

               the sign is located.

 

                        Sign, Billboard                                         Sign, Off-Premises

 

2.03.239   SIGN, BUSINESS shall mean a sign that directs attention to a              

               business or profession conducted, or to a commodity or service sold, offered, or manufactured, or to an

               entertainment offered on the premises where the sign is located.  A business sign shall mean the same as an on-

               premise sign.

 

2.03.240  SIGN, GROUND shall mean any sign, other than a pole sign, in which the entire bottom is in contact with or

               is close to the ground and is independent of any other structure.

 

                           Sign, Ground

                    Sign, Electronic Message

                          Sign, Flashing                                                                              

 

 

                                         Sign, Ground

                                 Sign, Changeable Copy

 

2.03.241   SIGN, ILLUMINATED shall mean a sign illuminated in any manner by an artificial light source.

 

2.03.242   SIGN, INFLATABLE shall mean any display capable of being expanded by air or other gas and

               used to advertise a product or event.

 

2.03.243   SIGN, POLE shall mean a sign that is mounted on a freestanding pole or other support so that the bottom

               edge of the sign face is six inches or more above grade.                              

                                                                                                                                 

2.03.244   SIGN, PORTABLE shall mean a sign that is not permanent, affixed to a building, structure or the ground.  

 

2.03.245   SIGN, PROJECTING shall mean a sign that is wholly or partly dependent upon a building for support and

               the projects more than 12 inches from such building.

 

 

               Sign, Projecting

 

2.03.246   SIGN, REAL ESTATE shall mean a sign pertaining to the sale or lease of the premises, or a portion of the

               premises, on which the sign is located.

 

2.03.247   SIGN, ROOF shall mean a sign that is mounted on the roof of a building or that is wholly dependent upon

               a building for support and that project above the top walk or edge of a building.      

                                                                             

2.03.248   SIGN, SETBACK shall mean the horizontal distance from the property line to the nearest projection of a

               sign.

 

2.03.249   SIGN, SUBDIVISION shall mean a sign erected on a subdivision identification lot which identifies the

               platted subdivision where the sign is located.

 

2.03.250   SIGN, TEMPORARY shall mean a sign constructed of cloth, fabric, canvas, plywood or other material

               with or without a structural frame intended for a limited period of display, including displays for holidays

               or public demonstrations. Temporary signs shall include portable signs as defined in this section.

 

2.03.251   SIGN, WALL shall mean a sign fastened to or painted on the wall of a building or structure in such a

               manner that the wall becomes the supporting structure for, or forms the background surface of; the sign

               and that do not project more than 12 inches from such building or structure.

 

2.03.252   SIGN, WINDOW shall mean a sign painted, stenciled, or affixed on a window, which is visible from a

               right-of-way.

 

2.03.253   SIMILAR USE shall mean the use of land, buildings, or structures of like kind or general nature with other

               uses within a zoning district as related to bulk, intensity of use, traffic generation and congestion, function,

               public services requirements, aesthetics or other similarities.

 

2.03.254   SITE PLAN shall mean a plan, prepared to scale, showing accurately and with complete dimensioning, the

               boundaries of a site and the location of all buildings, structures, uses, drives, parking, drainage, landscape

               features, and other principal site development improvements for a specific parcel of land.

 

2.03.255   SOLID WASTE shall mean waste materials consisting of garbage, trash, refuse, rubble, sewage, offal, dead

               animals, or paunch manure.

 

2.03.256   SPECIFIED ANATOMICAL AREAS  shall mean anatomical areas consisting of:

               A.            Less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttock, anus, or female

                               breast(s) below a point immediately above the top of the areola; and,

               B.            Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.

 

2.03.257 SPECIFIED SEXUAL ACTIVITIES  shall mean activities consisting of the following:

               A.            Actual or simulated sexual intercourse, oral copulation, anal intercourse, oral-anal copulation,

                               bestiality, direct physical stimulation of unclothed genitals, flagellation or torture in the context of a

                               sexual relationship, or the use of excretory functions in the context of a sexual relationship, and any of

                               the following sexually-oriented acts of conduct:  Anilingus, buggery, coprophagy, coprophilia,

                               cunnilingus, fellatio, necrophilia, pederasty, pedophilia, piquerism, sapphism, zooerasty; or

               B.            Clearly depicted human genitals in the state of sexual stimulation, arousal, or tumescence; or

               C.            Use of human or animal ejaculation, sodomy, oral copulation, coitus, or masturbation; or

               D.            Fondling or touching of nude human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, or female breast(s); or

               E.             Situation involving a person or persons, any of whom are nude, clad in undergarments or in sexually

                               revealing costumes, and who are engaged in activities involving the flagellation, torture, fettering,

                               binding, or other physical restraint or any such persons; or

               F.             Erotic or lewd touching, fondling, or other sexually-oriented contact with an animal by a human

                               being; or

               G.            Human excretion, urination, menstruation, vaginal, or anal irrigation.

 

2.03.258   STABLE, PRIVATE shall mean an accessory building for the keeping of horses owned by the occupants of

               the premises and not kept for remuneration, hire or sale.

 

2.03.259   STABLE, RIDING shall mean a structure in which horses used for pleasure riding or driving, are housed,

               boarded, or kept for remuneration, hire, or sale.

 

2.03.260   STREET (ROAD) shall mean a public thoroughfare or right-of-way dedicated, deeded, or condemned for use

               as such, other than an alley, which affords the principal means of access to abutting property including avenue,

               place, way, drive, lane, boulevard, highway, road and any other thoroughfare except as excluded in this

               Regulation.

 

2.03.261   STREET, FRONTAGE ACCESS shall mean a street designed for direct access to abutting residential,

               commercial or industrial properties with a controlled and separate access to a main thoroughfare.

 

2.03.262   STRUCTURE shall mean anything constructed or built, any edifice or building of any kind, or any piece of

               work artificially built up or composed of parts joined together in some definite manner, which requires

               location on the ground or is attached to something having a location on the ground, including swimming and

               wading pools and covered patios, excepting outdoor areas such as paved areas, walks, tennis courts, and

               similar recreation areas.

 

2.03.263   STRUCTURAL, ALTERATION shall mean any change in the support members of a building, such as in a

               bearing wall, column, beam or girder, floor or ceiling joists, roof rafters, roof diaphragms, foundations, piles,

               or retaining walls or similar components.

 

2.03.264   SUBDIVISION shall mean the division of land into two or more lots, parcels, plats, or sites, for the purpose of

               sale, lease, offer, or development, whether immediate or future.  The term shall also include the division of

               residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other land whether by deed, metes and bounds description,

               lease, map, plat, or other instrument.

 

2.03.265   TEMPORARY shall mean not permanent, subject to time limitation/

 

2.03.266   TEMPORARY STRUCTURE shall mean a structure without any foundation or footings and that is  removed

               when the designated time period, activity, or use for which the temporary structure was erected has ceased.

 

2.03.267   TRANSITIONAL USE shall mean a permitted use or structure that, by nature or level and scale or activity,

               acts as a transition or buffer between two or more incompatible uses.

 

2.03.268   USE, PRINCIPAL shall mean the main use of land or structure, as distinguished from an accessory use. 

               (Also, see Building, Principal.)

 

2.03.269   USED MATERIALS YARD shall mean any lot or a portion of any lot used for the storage of used materials.

               This shall not include "Junk Yard" or "Automobile Wrecking Yards".

 

2.03.270   VARIANCE shall mean a relief from or variation of the provisions of this chapter, other than use regulations,

               as applied to a specific piece of property, as distinct from rezoning.

 

2.03.271   VISUAL OBSTRUCTION shall mean any fence, hedge, tree, shrub, wall or structure exceeding two feet in

               height, measured from the crown of intersecting or intercepting streets, alleys or driveways, which limit the

               visibility of persons in motor vehicles on said streets, alleys, or driveways. This does not include trees kept

               trimmed of branches below a minimum height of eight feet.  Refer to Article 3 – General Regulations.  (See

               also sight triangle).

 

2.03.272   WAREHOUSE AND DISTRIBUTION shall mean a use engaged in storage, wholesale, and distribution of

               manufactured products, supplies, and equipment.

 

2.03.273   Waste Handling System shall mean any and all systems, public or private, or combination of said

                structures intended to treat human or livestock excrement and shall include the following types of systems

                A.                  Holding pond shall mean an impoundment made by constructing an excavated pit, dam, embankment

                             or combination of these for temporary storage of liquid livestock wastes, generally receiving runoff

                             from open lots and contributing drainage area.

 

                B.                   Lagoon shall mean an impoundment made by constructing an excavated pit, dam, embankment or

                             combination of these for treatment of liquid livestock waste by anaerobic, aerobic or facultative

                             digestion. Such impoundment predominantly receives waste from a confined livestock operation.

 

                C.                   Liquid manure storage pits shall mean earthen or lined pits located wholly or partially beneath a

                             semi or totally housed livestock operation or at some removed location used to collect waste production.

 

                D.                  Sediment shall mean a pond constructed for the sole purpose of collecting and containing sediment.

 

2.03.274  WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM shall mean all sources of water and their surroundings under the control of one

                owner, and shall include all structures, conduits, and appurtenances by means of which such water is collected,

                treated, stored, or delivered, except service pipes between street mains and buildings and the plumbing within

                or in connection with the buildings served.

 

2.03.275  WATER WELL shall mean any excavation that is drilled, cored, bored, washed, driven, dug, jetted, or

                otherwise constructed for the purpose of exploring for ground water, monitoring ground water, utilizing the

                geothermal properties of the ground, obtaining hydro-geologic information, or extracting water from or

                injecting water into the underground water reservoir. Water well shall not include any excavation made for

                obtaining or prospecting for oil or natural gas or for inserting media to re-pressure oil or natural gas bearing

                formations regulated by the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. 

 

2.03.276   WHOLESALE ESTABLISHMENT shall mean an establishment for the on-premises sales of goods

               primarily to customers engaged in the business of reselling the goods.

 

2.03.277   WHOLESALE TRADE shall mean establishments or places of business primarily engaged in selling

               merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional, farm or professional business users; or to

               other wholesalers; or acting as agents or brokers in buying merchandise for or selling merchandise to such

               persons or companies. 

 

2.03.278   YARD shall mean any open space on the same lot with a building or a dwelling group, which open space is

               unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward to the sky, except for building projections or for

               accessory buildings or structures permitted by this Regulation.

 

2.03.279   YARD, FRONT shall mean a space extending the full width of the lot between any building and the front lot

               line and measured perpendicularly to the building at the closest point to the front lot line between the front

               yard setback line and the front lot line and extending the full width of the lot.

 

2.03.280   YARD, REAR shall mean a space extending across the full width of the lot between the principal building and

               the rear lot line and measured perpendicular to the building to the closest point of the rear lot line.

 

2.03.281   YARD, SIDE shall mean a space extending from the front yard to the rear yard between the principal building

               and the side lot line and measured perpendicular from the side lot line to the closest point of the principal building.

 

2.03.282   YARD WASTE shall mean accumulations of grass or shrubbery cuttings, leaves or other organic materials

               collected as a result of the care of lawns, shrubbery, vines and gardens.

 

2.03.283   YARD WASTE COMPOST SITE shall mean a tract of land, location, area, or premises used for composting

               yard waste.

 

Article 3:  General Regulations

 

 

 

Section 3.01         Principal Uses 

The principal uses of land or building as hereinafter listed in each Zoning District shall be permitted in the Districts

indicated under the provisions of this Regulation. No land or buildings shall be devoted to any use other than the use

permitted hereinafter in the Zoning District in which the land or building shall be located with the following exceptions:

1.                    Use lawfully established on the effective date of this Regulation and rendered non-conforming by the

             provisions thereof shall be subject to the provisions hereinafter set forth.

2.                    Conditional uses allowed in accordance with procedures or provisions set forth herein.

3.                    Accessory uses incidental to the principal use and located on the same lot.

 

Section 3.02 Conditional Uses

The development of this provision is based upon the Zoning Districts, within which Districts, the use of land and

buildings in relation to the land are substantially uniform.  It is recognized; however, that there are certain uses which,

because of their unique characteristics, cannot be properly classified in any particular Zoning District, without

consideration, in each case, of the impact or influence of those uses upon neighboring land.  Such conditional uses fall

into two categories:                       

1.                    Uses publicly operated or traditionally affected with a public interest.

2.                    Uses entirely private in character, but of such an unusual nature that their operation may give rise to unique

             problems with respect to their influence or impact on neighboring property.

 

Section 3.03 Accessory Uses 

Unless otherwise prohibited or restricted, a permitted use also allows uses, buildings, and structures incidental thereto if

located on the same site or building plot. However, such accessory uses, buildings, and structures shall not be

established or erected prior to the establishment or construction of the principal use or building unless otherwise

permitted by this Regulation.

 

Section 3.04 Nonconforming, General Intent

Within the districts established by this Resolution or amendments that may later be adopted there exist

1.             Lots,

2.             Structures,

3.             Uses of land and structures, and

4.             Characteristics of use

which were lawful before this Resolution was passed or amended, but which would be prohibited, regulated or

restricted under the terms of this Resolution or future amendment.  It is the intent of this Resolution to permit these

nonconformities to continue until they are removed but not to encourage their survival.  It is further the intent of this

Resolution that nonconformities shall not be enlarged upon, expanded or extended, nor be used as ground for adding

other structures or uses prohibited elsewhere in the same district.

 

Nonconforming uses are declared by this Resolution to be incompatible with permitted uses in the districts involved.

Nonconforming uses of a structure, nonconforming use of land, or nonconforming use of structure and land in

combination shall not be extended or enlarged after passage of this Resolution by attachment on a building or premises

of additional signs intended to be seen from off the premises, or by the addition of other uses, or a nature which would

be prohibited generally in the district involved.

 

To avoid undue hardship, nothing in this Resolution shall be deemed to require a change in the plans, construction or

designated use of any building on which actual construction was lawfully begun prior to the effective date of adoption

or amendment of this Resolution, and upon which actual building construction has been carried on diligently.  Actual

construction is hereby defined to include the placing of construction materials in permanent position and fastened in a

permanent manner.  Where excavation or demolition or removal of an existing building has been substantially begun

preparatory to rebuilding, such excavation or demolition or removal shall be deemed to be actual construction, provided

that work shall be carried on diligently.

 

Section 3.05 Nonconforming, General Intent

In any district in which single‑family dwellings are permitted, a single‑family dwelling and customary accessory

buildings may be erected on any single lot of record at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this Resolution

notwithstanding limitations imposed by other provisions of this Resolution.  Such lot must be in separate ownership and

not of continuous frontage with other lots in the same ownership.  This provision shall apply even though such lot fails

to meet the requirements for area or width, or both, that are generally applicable in the district, provided that yard

dimensions and requirements other than these applying to area or width, or both, of the lot shall conform to the

regulations for the district in which such lot is located.  Variance of yard requirements shall be obtained only through

action of the Board of Zoning Adjustment.

 

If two or more lots or combinations of lots and portions of lots with continuous frontage in single ownership are of

record at the time of passage or amendment of this Resolution, and if all or part of the lots do not meet the requirements

established for lot width and area, the lands involved shall be considered to be an undivided parcel for the purposes of

this Resolution, and no portion of said parcel shall be used or sold in a manner which diminishes compliance with lot

width and area requirements established by this Resolution, nor shall any division of any parcel be made which creates a

lot with width or area below the requirements stated in this Resolution.

 

Section 3.06 Nonconforming Uses of Land (or Land with Minor Structures Only)

Where at the time of passage of this Resolution, lawful use of land exists which would not be permitted by the

regulations imposed by this Resolution, and where such use involves no individual structure with a replacement cost

exceeding $1,000.00, the use may be continued so long as it remains otherwise lawful, provided:

3.06.01      No such nonconforming use shall be enlarged or increased nor extended to occupy a greater area of land

               than was occupied at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this Resolution;

3.06.02      No such nonconforming uses shall be moved in whole or in part to any portion of the lot or parcel other than

               that occupied by such use at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this Resolution;

3.06.03      If any such nonconforming use of land ceases for any reason for a period of more than 12 consecutive months,

               any subsequent use of such land shall conform to the regulations specified for the district in which such land is

               located;

 

Section 3.07 Nonconforming Structures

Where a lawful structure exists at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this Resolution that could not be built

under the terms of this Resolution by reasons of restrictions on area, lot coverage, height, yards, its location on the lot or

other requirements concerning the structure, such structure may be continued so long as it remains otherwise lawful,

subject to the following provisions:

3.07.01      No such nonconforming structure may be enlarged or altered in a way which increases its nonconformity,

               but any structure or portion thereof may be altered to decrease its nonconformity;

3.07.02      Should such nonconforming structure or nonconforming portions of structure be destroyed by any means to an

               extent of more than 50 percent of its replacement cost at time of destruction, it shall not be reconstructed

               except in conformity with the provisions of this Resolution.

3.07.03      Should such structure be moved for any reasons for any distance whatsoever, it shall thereafter conform to the

               regulations for the district in which it is located after it is moved.

 

Section 3.08 Nonconforming Uses of Structures or of Structures and Premises in Combination

If lawful use involving individual structures with a replacement cost of $1,000.00 or more, or of structure and premises

in combination exists at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this Resolution that would not be

allowed in the district under the terms of this Resolution, the lawful use may be continued so long as it remains

otherwise lawful, subject to the following provisions:

3.08.01      No existing structure devoted to a use not permitted by this Resolution in the district in which it is located

               shall be enlarged, extended, constructed, reconstructed, moved or structurally altered, except in changing

               the use of the structure to a use permitted in the district in which it is located;

3.08.02      Any nonconforming use may be extended throughout any parts of a building which was manifestly arranged

               or designed for such use at the time of adoption or amendment of this Resolution, but no such use shall be

               extended to occupy any land outside such building;

3.08.03      If no structural alterations are made, any nonconforming uses of a structure, or structure and premises may as a

               conditional use be changed to another nonconforming use, provided that the Commission and Board may

               require appropriate conditions and safeguards in accord with the provisions of this Resolution.

3.08.04      Any structure, or structure and land in combination, in or on which a nonconforming use is superseded by a

               permitted use shall thereafter conform to the regulations for the district, and the nonconforming use may not

               thereafter be resumed;

3.08.05      When nonconforming uses of a structure, or structure and premises in combination is discontinued or

               abandoned for 12 consecutive months (or for 18 months during any three‑year period except when government

               action impedes access to the premises), the structure, or structure and premises in combination shall not

               thereafter be used except in conformity with the regulations of the district in which it is located;

3.08.06      Where nonconforming use status applies to a structure and premises in combination, removal or destruction of

               the structure shall  eliminate the nonconforming status of the land.  Destruction for the purpose of this

               subsection is defined as damage to an extent of more than 50 percent of the replacement cost at the time of

               destruction.

 

Section 3.09 Repairs and Maintenance

On any nonconforming structure or portion of a structure containing a nonconforming use, work may be done in any

period of 12 consecutive months on ordinary repairs, or on repair or replacement of nonbearing walls, fixtures, wiring or

plumbing to an extent not exceeding 10 percent of the current replacement cost of the nonconforming structure or

nonconforming portion of the structure, provided that the cubic content existing when it became nonconforming shall

not be increased.

 

If a nonconforming structure or portion of a structure containing a nonconforming use becomes physically unsafe or

unlawful due to lack of repairs and maintenance, and is declared by any duly authorized official to be unsafe or

unlawful by reason of physical condition, it shall not thereafter be restored, repaired or rebuilt except in conformity with

the regulations of the district in which it is located unless approved by the Commission and Board.

 

Section 3.10 Uses Under Conditional Use Provisions Not Nonconforming Uses

Any use which is permitted as a conditional use in a district under the terms of this Resolution (other than a change

through Board of Supervisors action from a nonconforming use to another use not generally permitted in the district)

shall not be  deemed a nonconforming use in such district but shall without further action be considered a conforming

use.

 

Section 3.11 Lot

3.11.01      Every building hereafter erected, reconstructed, converted, moved or structurally altered shall be located

                  on a lot or lot of record and in no case, shall there be more than one principal building on a lot unless

                  otherwise provided.

3.11.02      More than one principal building of a single permitted use may be located upon a lot or tract in the

               following instances:

               a                     Institutional buildings

               b                     Public or semi-public buildings

               c                     Commercial or industrial buildings

              d                     Agricultural accessory buildings

 

Section 3.12 Reductions in Lot Area Prohibited

No lot, even though it may consist of one or more adjacent lots of record, shall be reduced in area so that yards, lot

area per family, lot width, building area, or other requirements of this Regulation are not maintained.  This section

shall not apply when a portion of a lot is acquired for a public purpose.

 

Section 3.13 Yard Requirements

3.13.01      Yard requirements shall be set forth under the Schedule of Lot, Yard, and Bulk Requirements for each

               zoning district. Front, side and rear yards shall be provided in accordance with the regulations hereinafter

               indicated and shall be unobstructed from the ground level to the sky, except as herein permitted.

3.13.02      All accessory buildings that are attached to principal buildings (e.g., attached garages) shall comply with

               the yard requirements of the principal building, unless otherwise specified.

 

Section 3.14 Permitted Obstructions in Required Yards

The following shall not be considered to be obstructions when located in the required yards:

 

3.14.01      All Yards:

               a                     Steps and accessibility ramps used for wheelchair and other assisting devices which are four feet

                           or less above grade which are necessary for access to a permitted building or for access to a lot

                           from a street or alley;

               b                    Chimneys projecting 24 inches or less into the yard;

               c                     Recreational and laundry-drying equipment;

              d                     Approved freestanding signs;

               e                    Arbors and trellises;

               f                      Flag poles;

               g                    Window unit air conditioners projecting not more than 18 inches into the required yard; and

               h                    Fences or walls subject to applicable height restrictions are permitted in all yards.

3.14.02      Front Yards:

               a                     Bay windows projecting three feet or less into the yard; 

 

3.14.03      Rear and Side Yards:

               a                     Open off-street parking spaces,

               b                     Balconies or outside elements of central air conditioning systems.

 

3.14.04      Double Frontage Lots:

               The required front yard shall be provided on each street.

 

3.14.05      Building Groupings:

               For the purpose of the side yard regulation a group of business or industrial buildings separated by a

               common party wall shall be considered as one building occupying one lot.

 

Section 3.15 Accessory Building and Uses

3.15.01      Detached accessory buildings shall conform to all yard setbacks.

3.15.02      No accessory building shall be constructed upon a lot until the construction of the main building has

commenced or unless a conditional use permit has been obtained. Provided, however, the applicant as part

of the conditional use permit process, shall be required to provide, and have accepted by the County, a

performance guarantee in the amount of $500.00. The performance guarantee is a security that guarantees

the work / conditions will be followed in accordance with the requirements of the County. The

performance guarantee will be returned when the County stipulations have been met. Non-compliance

with County stipulations will result in the forfeiture of the performance guarantee.

3.15.03      Detached accessory buildings or structures shall be located no closer to any other accessory or principal

building than 10 feet unless allowed by the County’s Building Code.

3.15.04      Regulation of accessory uses shall be as follows:

a                     Except as herein provided, no accessory building shall project beyond a required yard line along

             any street.

b                     Service station pumps and pump islands may occupy the required yards, provided, however, that

             they are not less than 15 feet from street lines.

 

Section 3.16 Permitted Modifications of Height Regulations.

3.16.01      The height limitations of this Regulation shall not apply to:

               Belfries                                                   Public Monuments

               Chimneys                                              Ornamental Towers and Spires

               Church Spires                                       Radio and Television Towers less than 100 feet in height

               Conveyors                                            Air-Pollution Prevention Devices

               Cooling Towers & Ventilators          Grain Elevators and Silos

               Elevator Bulkheads                             Smoke Stacks

               Fire Towers                                           Stage Towers or Scenery Lots

               Water Towers and Standpipes          Tanks

               Flag Poles                                             Wind Energy Systems

               Barns, silos & other Ag. Structures   Cupolas

               Derricks                                                 Domes

               Grain Elevators                                    Observation Towers

               Masts & Aerials                                  

 

and any necessary mechanical apparatus usually required to be placed above the roof level and not intended for human

occupancy may be erected to any safe height not in conflict with any other existing federal, state or local regulations, or

any other County regulations.  These structures shall require permits as required by the County.

 

When permitted in the district, public or semi-public service buildings, hospitals, institutions, churches and other

places of interest, or schools may be erected to a height not exceeding 75 feet when each required yard line is

increased by at least one foot for each one foot of additional building height above the height regulations for

the district in which the building is located.

 

Single-family and two-family dwellings may be increased in height by not more than 10 feet, but not to exceed three

stories in height, when the side and rear yards are increased a distance of not less than 10 feet over the minimum yard

requirements of the district regulations.

 

Section 3.17 Repairs and Maintenance

Nothing in this regulation shall be deemed to prevent the strengthening or restoring to a safe condition of any

building or part thereof declared to be unsafe by the County’s Building Inspector, or other County designee.

 

Section 3.18 Amenities, Fire

Open or lattice-enclosed fire escapes, fireproof outside stairways and balconies opening upon fire towers, and

the ordinary projections of chimneys and flues into the rear yard, may be permitted by the Planning

Administrator, upon review by the County Building Inspector, and where the same are so placed as not to

obstruct lights and ventilation.

 

Section 3.19 Side Yards

No side yards are required where dwelling units are erected above commercial and industrial structures.

 

Section 3.20 Recreation Equipment, Storage

Major recreational equipment such as boats, boat trailers, travel trailers, pick-up campers or coaches, camping

buses or converted trucks, tent trailers, and recreational vehicles shall not be stored or parked within the

required front yard of a residentially zoned district and no such recreational equipment shall be utilized for

living, sleeping or housekeeping purposes when parked in a residentially zoned district or in any location not

approved for such use.

 

Section 3.21 Building Setback

The building setback lines shall be determined by measuring the horizontal distance from the property line to

the furthest architectural projection of the existing or proposed structure.

 

Section 3.22 Screening

3.22.01      Junkyards (salvage or wrecking yards) shall be screened with an eight feet high opaque, solid fence,

               brick wall, or earth berm so as to provide visual and aural separation between such use and adjacent

               areas.

3.22.02      Junkyards (salvage or wrecking yards) located next to railroad right-of-way shall have a 10 feet high

               opaque, solid fence, brick wall, or earth berm on the property line common to the railroad right-of-

way

3.22.03      All extractive industries shall be screened by means of plant materials, earth mounding, or solid

               fencing at least six feet in height to provide visual and aural separation between such use and adjacent

               areas.

 

Section 3.23 Obstructions within the Sight Triangle.

3.23.01      On a corner lot in any district, nothing shall be erected, planted, or allowed to grow in such a manner

               as to materially impede vision between a height of two and one-half feet and eight feet above the

               grades of the centerline of the intersecting street, from the point of intersection 120 feet in each

               direction, measured along the centerline of the street.

 

Section 3.24 Manufactured Homes.

3.24.01    In no case shall the placement of two (2) manufactured homes on one legal description be allowed in

                any zoning district

 

3.24.02    No factory built single-family structures that meet either the HUD Code or the adopted County

                building code shall be permitted in any zoning district as an accessory building.

 

Article 4:  Interpretation, District Boundaries, and Official Zoning Map

 

Section 4.01 Interpretation

This Regulation shall not nullify the more restrictive provisions of covenants, agreements, resolutions, other

ordinances or laws but shall prevail notwithstanding such provisions which are less restrictive.

 

Section 4.02 Boundaries

Where uncertainty exists as to the boundaries of districts as shown on the Official Zoning Map, the following rules

shall apply:

4.02.01      Boundaries indicated as approximately following the centerlines or right-of-way of streets, highways or

               alleys shall be construed to follow such center or right-of-way lines unless otherwise noted.

4.02.02      Boundaries indicated as approximately following platted lot lines shall be construed as following such lot

               lines.

4.02.03      Boundaries indicated as following city/village limits shall be construed as following city/village limits.

4.02.04      Boundaries indicated as following railroad lines shall be construed to be midway between the main tracks.

4.02.05      Boundaries indicated as following shore lines shall be construed to follow such shore lines, and in the

               event of change in the shore line shall be construed as moving with the actual shore line; boundaries

               indicated as approximately following the center lines of streams, rivers, canals, lakes or other bodies of

               water shall be construed to follow such center lines.

4.02.06      Boundaries indicated as parallel to or extensions of features indicated in subsection 4.02.01 through

               4.02.05 above shall be so construed. Distances not specifically indicated on the Official Zoning Map shall

               be determined by the scale of the map.

4.02.07      Where physical or cultural features existing on the ground are at variance with those shown on the Official

               Zoning Map, and the County Surveyor cannot reasonably clarify the boundary lines; or in the case of

               disagreement; or in other circumstance not covered by subsections 4.02.01 through 4.02.06 above, the

               Board of Zoning Adjustment shall interpret the district boundaries.

4.02.08      Whenever a road, highway, or other thoroughfare between two zoning districts is officially vacated, the

               abutting zoning district boundaries shall be the centerline of such vacated public thoroughfare.

 

Section 4.03 Official Zoning Map

The boundaries of these Districts are hereby established as shown on the Official Zoning Map, which together with all

explanatory matter thereon, is hereby adopted by reference and declared to be a part of these Regulations.

 

The Official Zoning Map shall be identified by the signature of the Chairman of the Board of County Supervisors

attested to by the County Clerk, and bearing the seal of the County under the following words: "This is to certify that

this is the Official Zoning Map referred to in Washington County, Nebraska Zoning Resolution", together with the date

of the adoption of these Regulations.

 

If, in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations, changes are made in District boundaries or other matter

portrayed on the Official Zoning Map, such changes shall be made on the Official Zoning Map promptly after the

amendment has been approved and adopted by the County Board of Supervisors.

 

The Official Zoning Map shall be located both in the County Planning Office and the Office of the County Clerk and

such map shall be the final authority as the current zoning status of land, water areas, buildings and other structures.

 

Article 5: Districts

 

Section 5.01 Establishment of Districts

For the purposes of this Zoning Regulation, that portion of Washington County, Nebraska which is outside the limits of any

incorporated city or village or is outside the zoning or extra-territorial jurisdictional limits of any incorporated city or village

and over which such city or village is exercising such jurisdiction, is hereby divided into the following Districts:

                A-1         Primary Agriculture District

                TA-1       Transitional Agricultural District

                H-A        Homestead Agricultural

                A-2         Agriculture Commercial District

                A-LSR    Lot Split Residential District

                RS-1        Rural Subdivision District - 1

                RS-2        Rural Subdivision District – 2

                RA          Rural Acreage District

                C-1          Retail Neighborhood Commercial District

                C-2          Business Park Retail District

                I-1           Industrial Center District

                I-2           Agricultural \ General Industrial District

                RMD      Residential Mixed Use District

                CMD      Commercial \ Industrial Mixed Use District

                WPO      Wellhead Protection Overlay District

 

Any land whose classification is not shown on the Zoning Plan, and land hereafter disconnected from an incorporated

municipality shall be classified as in the A-1 District until classified by amendment.

 

 

Section 5.02 Previous Districts

                A-2         Agriculture Commercial District (see Appendix A)

                RRS-1     Rural Residential Subdivision (see Appendix A)

                R-1          Agricultural Residence District (see Appendix A)

                R-2          Estate Residence District (see Appendix A)

                R-3          Suburban District (see Appendix A)

                R-4          Urban Residence District (see Appendix A)

                C-2          General Commercial District (see Appendix A)

                I-1           Industrial Park District (see Appendix A)

                I-2           Agricultural/General Industrial District (see Appendix A)

                I-3           Agricultural/Manufacturing Industrial District (see Appendix A)

                F-1          Flood Plain District (see Appendix A)

 

Washington County recognizes all previously platted lots as of the effective date of this Resolution as "lots of record." 

Lots of record will be governed by the setback, height, area, and density regulations of the zoning district in which they

were located prior to the effective date of this Resolution.  The regulations applicable to lots of record are found in

Appendix “A” of these Regulations, and shall apply only to the setback, height, area, and density for the development of

said lots of record.  The regulations found in Appendix “A” applicable to lots of record are for the limited purpose

expressed herein and are not to be considered as zoning districts for the purpose of rezoning any land in Washington

County after the effective date of this Resolution.  Any new subdivisions or platting of lots approved after the effective

date of this Resolution shall comply with the setback, height, area, and density regulations established by this Resolution

for the zoning district in which said land is located.

 

Section 5.03: A-1 Agricultural – Primary District

 

5.03.01 Intent

The A-1 Agricultural District regulations are intended to provide for the lands best suited for agricultural uses of all

types, including feedlots, and to protect the value of such land.  This District also intends to provide for the location and

to govern the establishment and operation of land uses that are compatible with agriculture and are of such nature that

their location away from residential, commercial and industrial areas is most desirable.

 

5.03.02  Permitted Principal Uses

The following principal uses are permitted in the Agricultural A-1 District.

1.                    Livestock feeding operations provided the following provisions are met:

             A.            Any operation containing a total of 40 acres or more within a five-mile radius of a proposed

                             confinement site is permitted the number of animals (at any one time) as defined under “confined

                             animal feeding operation, large.” The confinement site must be a legally described minimum 10-acre

                             tract.

             B.            Any operation containing less than 40 continuous acres of a proposed confinement site is permitted the

                            amount of animals allowed by taking the total acres divided by 40 and then multiplying by the total

                            number of animals allowed for forty acres. The confinement site must be a legally described minimum

                            of two-acre tract (see ratios above).

2.                    Agricultural farms, truck gardens, greenhouses, plant nurseries, orchards, apiaries, mushroom barns, grain

             storage facilities, and the usual agricultural farm buildings and structures.

3.                    Temporary limited-time seasonal type uses open to the public, such as a haunted house, Christmas tree farm and

             accessory uses, provided all other County codes and regulations are followed.

4.                    All other uses listed as a Permitted Use within the Land Use Matrix.

 

5.03.03  Conditional Uses

The following uses are subject to any conditions listed in this Regulation and any other conditions as recommended by

the Commission and approved by the Board.

1.                    Any proposed confined feeding operation that exceeds the maximums, and\or the ratios in 5.03.02 (1)(A) above,

             or does not meet   the minimum acres for a confinement site.

2.                    Any proposed subdivision (excluding lot splits) within one mile of a confinement site previously approved by

             Conditional Use Permit by the County.

3.                    Overhead and underground utilities main transmission lines including, but not limited to, power, telephone, gas,

             fuel, or fertilizer lines, substations, terminal facilities, and reservoirs.

4.                    Development of natural resources and the extraction of raw materials such as rock, gravel, sand, etc., including

             gas and oil extraction and exploration, and subject to the requirements in the Supplementary Regulations.

5.                    Radio, cellular and television towers and transmitters and are subject to the requirements in the Supplementary

             Regulations.

6.                    "this space left intentionally blank" (deleted 11-24-2009)

7.                    Sanitary landfill siting or expansion conducted in a manner and method approved by the Board, provided said

             landfill is not closer than 1,000 feet to a municipal well and/or within one mile of any village or city limits, or

             any subdivision or residence.  Also refer to the Supplemental Regulations.

8.                    Disposal of paunch manure.

9.                    Disposal of sludge.

10.                Disposal of corn milling biosolids.

11.                 The placement of broken concrete for rip-rap and fill material for embankment reconstruction and erosion

             retardation only.

12.                The temporary allowance for two single-family residences on a property in a situation where a new residence is

             to be constructed followed by the removal of the existing residence.

13.                Yard waste compost site generating more than 100 cubic yards of yard waste per year.

14.                 Temporary buildings and uses incidental to construction work that shall be removed upon the completion or

              abandonment of the construction work.

15.                 Temporary occupancy, for a maximum of one year, of a mobile home for residential purposes may be allowed

             during the actual construction or reconstruction of a dwelling.  Provided:

             a.                    The applicant, as part of the Conditional Use Permit process, shall be required to provide, and have

                          accepted by the County, a Performance Guarantee in the amount of $1,000.00.

                                                     i.                  The Performance Guarantee shall either be in the form of a performance bond or a certified

                                      check.

                          ii.                 The Performance Guarantee is a security that guarantees the work/conditions will be followed

                                      in accordance with the requirements of the County.

                          iii.               The Performance Guarantee will be returned when all County stipulations have been met.

                          iv.                Noncompliance with the County stipulations will result in the forfeiture of the Performance

                                       Guarantee.

16.                 Temporary placement of a mobile home for a contractor’s office as an incidental use to a construction project,

             provided:

             a.                    Such use shall continue only during the duration of the project and additionally that the mobile home is

                          removed within 30 days after the project is complete.

             b.                   The applicant, as part of the Conditional Use Permit process, shall be required to provide, and have

                          accepted by the County, a Performance Guarantee in the amount of $1,000.00.

                                                      i.                  The Performance Guarantee shall either be in the form of a performance bond or a certified

                                      check.

                                                    ii.                  The Performance Guarantee is a security that guarantees the work/conditions will be followed

                                      in accordance with the requirements of the County.

                                                 iii.                  The Performance Guarantee will be returned when all County stipulations have been met.

                                                 iv.                   Noncompliance with the County stipulations will result in the forfeiture of the Performance

                                      Guarantee.

17.                 The temporary occupancy of a mobile home, on a minimum 40 acre tract, or an undivided quarter-quarter

             section, by a person(s) receiving care from a caregiver; provided however, the mobile home shall be located

             within one-half mile from the existing dwelling occupied by the caregiver; and provided the person receiving

             care shall be an immediate family member.

18.                 Permanent on-site non-illuminated business sign per legal description identifying a product grown on the

             premises, limited to one sign total.

19.                 Commercial kennels provided all buildings, enclosures, or other facilities such as play areas, fenced-in areas

             and runs are at least 100 feet from adjacent property owners’ property lines and 300 feet from any county, city,

             or village zoned residential district.    

20.                 Mobile home, for up to one year and at review times set by the County, provided:

             a.                    The location of a mobile home for the purpose of providing a dwelling for a person whose employment

                          is agricultural and related to a County agricultural operation, either on the land the mobile home will

                          sit or within one-half mile of the agricultural operation.

             b.                   As proof of agricultural employment, the occupant of the mobile home shall provide to the County a

                          copy of the most recent Federal W-2 form showing employer and wages:

                                                          i.                At time of initial Conditional Use Permit application and;

                                                       ii.                At time of Conditional Use Permit review.

             c.                    A Performance Guarantee in the amount of $1,000.00 shall be provided to the County prior to the

                          Board’s public hearing on the request.

                                                       i.                The Performance Guarantee shall either be in the form of a performance bond or a certified

                                      check.

                                                     ii.                The Performance Guarantee is a security that guarantees the conditions will be followed in

                                      accordance with the requirements of the County.

                                                  iii.                The Performance Guarantee will be returned when all County stipulations have been met or

                                      when the mobile home is removed, whichever occurs last.

                                                  iv.                Noncompliance with the County stipulations will result in the forfeiture of the Performance

                                      Guarantee.

            d.                   The mobile home will be removed when no longer occupied by a hired hand or the home and land

                         upon which it sits is brought into conformance with the Zoning Resolution.

21.           All other uses listed as a Conditional Use within the Land Use Matrix.

 

5.03.04.  Permitted Accessory Uses

The following accessory buildings and uses are permitted in the A-1 District.

1.                    Buildings and uses customarily incidental to the permitted and conditional uses.

2.                    Home occupation.

3.                    Private swimming pools, tennis courts, and other recreational facilities in conjunction with the principal

             use.

4.                    Lighting as defined and regulated under the LZ0 zone.

5.                    Decks, gazebos, elevated patios either attached or detached.

 

5.03.05  Lot Requirements and Intensity of Use

1.             The following table lists the minimum lot requirements and maximum building requirements in the A-1 District.

                These requirements shall be followed unless otherwise modified by this Resolution.

 

 

 

Setbacks

 

Uses

Min Lot Area (acreage)

Min. Lot Width (feet)

Front Yard (feet)

Rear  Yard (feet)

Side   Yard (feet)

Max. Building Height (feet)

Dwellings

3*

200

50

25

15

35

Other Permitted or Conditional Uses

-

100

50

25

15

65

Accessory Buildings

-

-

70

5

5

15

On-Premise Sign1

-

-

0

5

5

20

 

1 Additionally, an on-premise sign face shall not exceed 150 square feet per side; if used, each side shall reference the

  same product; and the sign shall not exceed 20 feet in length.

 

* Minimum lot size can be reduced to 2 acres if property is served by a public water supply system.

 

No new building erected hereafter or any existing building altered/added to shall have any portion of said building nearer

than 90 feet to the center line of a U.S. or State designated highway or a major County collector road, and not nearer than

90 feet to the center line of any other County Highway Department maintained road.

 

Section 5.04: TA-1 Transitional Agricultural District

 

5.04.01 Intent

The intent of this district is to recognize the transition between agricultural uses of land, the growth areas of the

County, and the County’s communities; to encourage the continued use of that land which is suitable for agriculture,

but limit the land uses that may be a detriment to the efficient pursuit of agricultural production.

 

5.04.02  Permitted Principal Uses