Pocatello, ID Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Pocatello treats a home occupation as a narrow exception to residential zoning rather than a general right to run a business from any house. Section 17.06.400.A states the intent directly: the section exists to provide, under limited circumstances, for nonresidential use of a residence, not to let anyone circumvent the zoning restrictions on commercial activity in a residential district. The premises must remain primarily a residence whose occupants also conduct limited commercial activity there, the activity cannot negatively affect the health, safety, or welfare of the neighborhood, and it cannot unduly increase traffic or noise or change the residential character of the block; home occupation licenses apply only in residential zoning districts, and a use that fails these general criteria is not permitted regardless of the specific standards below.

An application must be filed with Planning and Development Services, and approval of a home occupation license does not excuse compliance with any other part of the code. Section 17.06.400.B lists the operating standards: no nuisance condition or excessive noise as defined elsewhere in the code; all workers besides one on-site helper must live at the same dwelling as the business; the dwelling cannot be remodeled in a way that changes its occupancy classification under the building code, apart from handicap-accessibility work with proper permits; no oversized or commercially plated vehicle may be stored on site or on the street for the business; and hours of operation run no earlier than 6:30 a.m. and no later than 9:00 p.m.

Section 17.06.400.C then sorts specific use categories, such as bed and breakfasts, animal-related services, and daycare, into permitted, conditional, or nonpermitted columns on a home occupation use table.