Nassau County, FL Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)

12 of the Land Development Code ties the county's Open Rural (OR) zoning protections to the property appraiser's ad valorem classification: once land is classified open rural for tax purposes it is treated as OR-zoned for every use, restriction and regulation in the code, whatever the Zoning Atlas actually shows, and that protection lasts as long as the tax classification holds. Article 22 spells out what that buys a farm operator. The OR district's stated intent keeps substantial residential, commercial or industrial development out of areas where agricultural uses, accessory uses and activities that support them are encouraged.

01 permits agricultural, horticultural and forestry uses and the keeping of farm animals and poultry outright, so long as animal structures sit at least 100 feet from any property line; goats, sheep and swine must additionally stay 200 feet from any residence under different ownership. Noncommercial horses and ponies are capped at one animal six months or older per half-acre. Roadside stands, U-pick farms, Christmas tree farms, plant nurseries and solar farms are also permitted uses. 05 requires a 35-foot front, 15-foot side and 25-foot rear yard.

06 caps building height at 45 feet for non-agricultural structures but places no height limit on agricultural buildings, and limits overall lot coverage to 20 percent. Uses that exceed a granted conditional use or ignore these standards become zoning violations that Planning and Economic Opportunity Department staff can refer for code enforcement.