Lancaster County, NE Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

015 of the Lincoln-Lancaster County Zoning Resolution fixes the yard depths that apply to every lot in the county's "R" Residential District. The front yard must run not less than thirty feet, and a corner or double-frontage lot needs a front yard on each street side, though the resolution protects a narrow buildable lot by not shrinking its width below thirty-five feet, substituting a five-foot side yard where necessary. Side yards must be not less than ten feet on each side of a building, a figure that can drop to as little as four feet, or ten percent of a substandard lot's width, for a lot that was already too narrow when the resolution passed.

The rear yard must be not less than thirty feet or twenty percent of the depth of the lot, whichever amount is smaller. 015 pairs those yard rules with minimum lot sizes: 9,000 square feet for a single-family dwelling, 14,000 square feet for a two-family dwelling, and 14,000 square feet plus 5,000 more for each additional family for a multiple dwelling, on a lot at least sixty feet wide. An accessory building not attached to the main house gets one concession: if it sits at least sixty feet back from the front lot line, it may extend into the side yard to within two feet of the side lot line, and an alley-entered garage needs only a ten-foot setback from the alley.