Lancaster County, NE Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

051 of the Lincoln-Lancaster County Zoning Resolution lets a Large Solar Facility operate in the AG and I zoning districts only after the Planning Commission grants a special permit, and a Small Solar Facility needs its own special permit in the AGR and R districts. A Large Solar Facility must sit back 100 feet from a non-participating dwelling, 50 feet from a non-participating vacant lot or public roadway, and can sit right on the line (0 feet) against a participating property. ), measured at the closest exterior wall of the dwelling that complained; publicly-owned substations are exempt.

Screening for neighboring homes, parks and schools must use fences, walls, berms or plantings, capped at 50% fence/wall coverage, and any fence used for screening must be masonry, stone or wood, never chain link. Before construction starts, the applicant must also file an approved erosion-control plan with the Lower Platte South or Nemaha Natural Resources District. Every permit carries a decommissioning plan: a professional engineer's removal-cost estimate updated every five years, financial security posted by year fifteen of operation, and the panels, wiring and fencing removed to at least three feet of depth if the facility produces no energy for twelve straight months.

A Small Solar Facility, allowed in AGR and R districts, follows the same base conditions but caps panel and mount height at fifteen feet at maximum tilt. Resolution No. R-20-0037 (July 14, 2020) and R-23-0001 (January 3, 2023) amended these standards.