Lancaster County, NE Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- AG/AGR animated signs
- Never permitted
- Off-premises signs allowed in
- B and I districts only
- Off-premises permit term
- 10 years, renewable
- Illumination curfew
- Barred midnight to 5 a.m.
- Sign spacing
- 600 ft from another off-premises sign
- Residential buffer
- 150 ft minimum
- Abandoned sign removal
- Within 10 days after 6 months blank
Summary
Lancaster County's AG and AGR districts flatly bar any sign lit by flashing, intermittent or moving lights or with animated or moving parts under Section 16.005, ruling out digital billboards there outright. Off-premises signs allowed in the B and I districts under Section 16.007 cannot be illuminated between midnight and 5 a.m.
No sign may be permitted which contains, includes, or is illuminated by any flashing, intermittent, or moving light or lights or any animated or moving parts... Illumination of off-premises signs shall not be allowed from midnight to 5:00 a.m. If off-premises signs are illuminated, it shall be in accordance with design standards. The lighting shall be controlled by an automatic timing device and the lighting shall be provided by down lighting methods.
Full Breakdown
005 of the Lincoln-Lancaster County Zoning Resolution governs signs in the AG Agricultural and AGR Agricultural Residential Districts, and it flatly states that no sign may be permitted which contains, includes, or is illuminated by any flashing, intermittent, or moving light or lights or any animated or moving parts, which rules out digital message boards and video billboards in those districts regardless of size. On-premise signs in AG and AGR are otherwise capped at 60 square feet, and roadside signs are limited to one square foot per ten linear feet of highway frontage.
007. That permit expires automatically ten years after issuance and is renewable. Off-premises signs must sit at least 600 feet from any other off-premises sign, 600 feet from a school, college, park or cemetery, 150 feet from any residential district, and 600 feet from a designated sensitivity zone such as a historic district, historic landmark, bike trail or the Capitol environs. , must be controlled by an automatic timer, and must use down-lighting. An abandoned off-premises sign, one carrying no copy on any face for six straight months, must come down within ten days of the abandonment date.
Violations & Fines
An off-premises sign lit between midnight and 5 a.m., built closer than the required 600-foot or 150-foot spacing, or left up six months after going blank without being removed within ten days is unlawful under Section 16.007, and the Director of Building and Safety can void the administrative permit. Any sign in the AG or AGR district with animated, flashing or moving-light elements is never permitted regardless of the sign owner's permit status.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a digital billboard go up in unincorporated Lancaster County?
How close can a billboard be to a house?
What happens to a billboard that stops displaying an ad?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lancaster County
Compare Lancaster County to another location·View the Nebraska sign regulations overview
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