Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Village of Pender, Nebraska
Village of Pender is a village in Thurston County, Nebraska. Village of Pender adopts its own zoning, so inside its limits Village of Pender’s rules apply, not the county’s. 7 rules below are quoted from official sources and independently re-checked, most recently on October 23, 2026. Rules for unincorporated land are on the Thurston County page.
Answers from the rulebook for Village of Pender
Village of Pender’s own rules
Local zoningPresent (with conditions)
Land inside Pender village limits: the village's own zoning ordinance (Code Chapter 151, Zoning Regulations) applies to parcels inside the village.
Chapter 151 is listed in the code contents as Zoning Regulations with districts AGR, R-1, R-2, R-3, C-1, C-2 and I.
Zoning sections reviewed bear the notation '(ord. passed 8- -2010)' with an incomplete day, so no effective date is recorded.
Whether the village zoning reaches its one-half-mile planning jurisdiction was not confirmed on an official page; a third-party mirror says so but is not evidence.
“(a) intent. this district is intended to provide for residential uses consisting primarily of single-family dwelling units.”
Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)
Zoning districts of Pender village (Chapter 151).
Districts listed in the code contents: AGR (§ 151.040), R-1 (§ 151.041), R-2 (§ 151.042), R-3 (§ 151.043), C-1 (§ 151.044), C-2 (§ 151.045) and I (§ 151.046).
District text for AGR, C-2 and I was not opened; the zoning map was not located.
“§ 151.040 agr agriculture residential district. § 151.041 r-1 residential single-family district. § 151.042 r-2 residential single- and multi-family district. § 151.043 r-3 residential mobile home district. § 151.044 c-1 general commercial district. § 151.045 c-2 highway commercial district. § 151.046 i industrial district.”
Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified
Manufactured homes located outside mobile home parks inside Pender village.
Applies to manufactured homes only; no general minimum floor area for site-built dwellings was found in the sections opened (§§ 151.041, 151.042, 151.112).
minimum floor area: >= 900 sq ft
“(a) the home shall have no less than 900 square feet of floor area;”
Minimum lot sizeSpecified
Single-family dwelling in the R-1 Residential Single-Family district inside Pender village (main single-family district).
Minimum lot width 50 feet for a single-family dwelling in R-1.
Lot-size exception (§ 151.115): if, at the time of passage of this subchapter, a lot or the aggregate of contiguous lots or land parcels held in a single ownership, has an area or dimension which does not meet the lot size requirements of the district in which the property is located, the lot or aggregate holdings may be occupied by any use permitted outright in the district subject to the other requirements of the district.
The AGR district (§ 151.040) is listed in the contents but its dimensional table was not retrieved; the R-2 single-family minimum (6,000 sq ft) is a separate district and not restated here.
lot area, single-family dwelling: >= 7000 sq ft (see § 151.115 existing-lot exception in conditions) · lot width, single-family dwelling: >= 50 ft
“single-family dwelling 7,000 50 30 7 25 35”
SetbacksSpecified
Single-family dwelling in the R-1 Residential Single-Family district inside Pender village.
Corner lots: (2) buildings on corner lots shall provide front yard setbacks of 25 feet on one street side and 15 feet on the other front yard and designate remaining yards as one rear and one side yard.
Two-family dwellings in R-1 may have the side yard between units reduced to zero where a one-hour fire rated common wall is maintained (§ 151.041(f)(4)).
front yard setback: >= 30 ft (25 ft on one street side of a corner lot; 15 ft on the other) · side yard setback: >= 7 ft · rear yard setback: >= 25 ft
“(2) buildings on corner lots shall provide front yard setbacks of 25 feet on one street side and 15 feet on the other front yard and designate remaining yards as one rear and one side yard;”
Building heightSpecified
Single-family dwelling in the R-1 Residential Single-Family district inside Pender village.
Height exceptions are in § 151.114, which was not opened.
Buildings and structures in R-1 may not exceed two and one half stories.
maximum height, single-family dwelling: <= 35 ft (see § 151.114 exceptions (not reviewed)) · maximum stories: <= 2.5 stories
“(3) building and structures shall not exceed two and one half stories in height;”
Manufactured homesAllowed (with conditions)
Manufactured homes on individual lots inside Pender village in the R-1 Residential Single-Family and R-2 Residential Single- and Multi-Family districts, as uses by right.
Each home must meet § 151.112: at least 900 square feet of floor area, at least 18-foot exterior width, roof pitch of at least 2.5 inches of rise per 12 inches, exterior compatible with site-built single-family construction, non-reflective roof, wheels, axles, transporting lights and towing apparatus removed, and building code requirements adopted by the village.
Mobile home parks are allowed only in the R-3 district under listed conditions (§ 151.116(a): mobile home parks shall only be allowed in the r-3 zoning district under the following conditions).
Restrictive covenants of record are not superseded (§ 151.112(g)).
“(b) permitted principal uses and structures. the following shall be permitted as uses by right: (1) single-family dwellings; (2) manufactured homes which comply with the provisions of § 151.112;”
Still unanswered
We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Village of Pender or Thurston County directly.
Building permit — New residential construction inside Pender village
Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Pender village
Inspections — Inspections of residential construction inside Pender village
Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy of new dwellings inside Pender village
Lot coverage — Lot coverage inside Pender village
15 more unanswered
Living in an RV
Camping on your land
Tiny homes
Accessory dwellings
Septic permit
Septic inspection
Off-grid sanitation
Well permit
Mandatory utility hookup
Agricultural exemption
Driveway access
Building in a floodplain
Short-term rentals
Permit fees
Permit process
Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.
Unanswered questions are usually a sign that Village of Pender publishes no rule on the point, not that none exists. Thurston County’s page lists the county offices to call.
Off-grid gear
Going off-grid in Village of Pender means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:
