Black Hawk County, IA Ordinances (2026)

Black Hawk County requires a plumbing permit before any tap, connection, extension or repair to a water or sewer system in the unincorporated county. The county has adopted the 1997…

Black Hawk County's lead program requires owners to fix hazardous lead-based paint within 30 days once the county Health Officer confirms a hazard tied to a child with elevated blood…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, no building may be erected, altered or occupied without a permit issued by the County Building Inspector. BHCC 18.110.010 requires permits…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County lowers the fire sprinkler trigger under its adopted building code to any structure of 9,000 square feet or larger, regardless of use, per BHCC Section…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, the Health Officer can designate a defective or hazardous building unfit for human habitation and order it vacated. Owners must comply within a set…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County bars accumulating garbage, refuse, or yard waste on any premises, improved OR vacant, or on public land, once the Health Department determines the…

Anyone can trigger a Black Hawk County health-nuisance investigation by filing a complaint with the Health Officer, who also investigates on his or her own initiative. A written notice…

Black Hawk County's nuisance ordinance lists 13 specific conditions the Health Department treats as public health nuisances, from junk and garbage accumulation to rodent breeding…

Black Hawk County bans loud engine or compression brakes on any vehicle operated within the county under its Engine Noise Reduction Ordinance. A vehicle emitting excessive, loud…

Black Hawk County's Engineer sets the plowing sequence on the county's secondary road system: two-lane paved routes first, then gravel, with trucks normally off the road between 5 p.m…

Storing an unlicensed, inoperable, or unsafe junk vehicle outdoors on public or private property in unincorporated Black Hawk County is declared a health nuisance. Both the vehicle…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, commercial and industrial parking lots that don't open directly onto a public or private street must provide a paved access drive leading to…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, owners and occupants must keep yard waste separated from garbage and refuse and dispose of it only in areas the County designates. Dumping…

Anyone who collects and hauls garbage, refuse, or yard waste for a fee anywhere in Black Hawk County, including inside the cities, must first get an annual permit from the County…

Scattering refuse or dumping trash on streets, private property, or into any stream in unincorporated Black Hawk County is banned outright. Violations run through the county infraction…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County lets residents compost their own yard waste on the same property where it was generated, without a permit, as long as the compost pile does not become…

In the county's Agricultural-Residential district, backyard poultry counts as a "small animal" capped at one animal unit per 1,500 square feet of lot area, with separate density…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County does not cap the number of dogs a household may keep, but four or more dogs on one parcel legally becomes a "private kennel," a zoning use confined to…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County allows veterinary clinics as a permitted use in the Agricultural-Limited and Commercial-Manufacturing districts, but only if the clinic sits at least…

Once the Black Hawk County Health Officer determines cockroaches, rodents, or other vermin are present on a property, the owner must act within the Health Officer's deadline to abate…

New subdivisions in unincorporated Black Hawk County must provide adequate storm sewers and inlets, protect natural waterways, and route all stormwater facilities through County…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County splits its floodplain into four overlay sub-districts, Floodway, Floodway Fringe, General Floodplain and Shallow Flooding, each with its own permitted…

New or substantially improved buildings in the county's Floodway Fringe, General Floodplain and Shallow Flooding overlay districts must have their lowest floor elevated at least three…

In the floodplain districts of unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, a boat dock placed on any river or stream (other than a lake) needs approval from the Iowa Department of Natural…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, a tiny home wider than eight feet is legally a mobile home, not a recreational vehicle. County code confines mobile homes used for dwelling…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, accessory buildings and sheds must sit in the side or rear yard, stay at least three feet from the main house, and top out at 20 feet. A one- or…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa exempts 'For Sale' and 'garage sale' signs under six square feet from its zoning sign permit process, but only on the actual days of the sale…

Black Hawk County, Iowa's zoning sign chapter exempts political signs on private property from the county's own permit and size rules entirely, so long as the sign complies with state…

A facility caring for six or more preschool-age children for pay is a "day nursery" under county code, and unincorporated Black Hawk County permits day care or nursery facilities as a…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County allows home occupations under BHCC 18.70.190, but the business must stay clearly secondary to residential use, run entirely inside the existing…

BHCC 18.70.190 bars a home occupation in unincorporated Black Hawk County from generating excessive traffic or letting any noise, odor or activity reach beyond the property line…

A home occupation in unincorporated Black Hawk County can display one identification sign under BHCC 18.70.190(G), capped at 32 square feet and no more than 12 feet high or wide. The…

In the agricultural and residential zoning districts of unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, outdoor advertising signs and billboards are prohibited outright, and even the narrow…

In the residential zoning districts of unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, the required front yard is set by the district's base standard, but where at least 30 percent of nearby…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa lets public, semi-public and institutional buildings rise to 60 feet, and churches and temples to 75 feet, if they add extra side and rear…

In unincorporated Black Hawk County, Iowa, an accessory building placed in a required rear yard cannot occupy more than 30 percent of that rear yard. BHCC § 18.120.010(D) sets the cap…

Unincorporated Black Hawk County ties its right-to-farm protections to three zoning classifications. BHCC 18.75.030 defines an agricultural district as land zoned A agricultural, A-L…

Black Hawk County Code Section 18.75.040 blocks nuisance lawsuits against a farm operating in an agricultural zoning district, using accepted practices, since before the alleged…