ADU rules in Scottsbluff

Scottsbluff's zoning code (Chapter 25) has no accessory dwelling unit, guest house or second-dwelling use in any residential district. The single-family districts list only single-family detached dwellings as the residential use, the R-1 bulk table caps a lot at one dwelling unit, and an accessory building is defined as subordinate and customarily incidental to the main building, so a backyard cottage with its own kitchen is not an allowed use. The only detached second home the code contemplates is an accessory single-family dwelling for farm or ranch employees in the A Agricultural district, by conditional use permit.

There is no ADU category, but a house can hold a second, independent unit as a two-family dwelling (a duplex, defined as one building under one roof for two families living independently). Two-family dwellings are a principal permitted use in R-1a Medium Density Residential and R-4 Heavy Density Residential, and a conditional use (formerly special permit use) in R-1 Low Density Residential. R-1b, R-6, AR and A do not list them. In R-1a a two-family dwelling needs a 7,000 sq ft lot that is 70 ft wide, against 5,500 sq ft for a single-family house.

Because the code has no ADU, it has no ADU size limit. The R-1a bulk table sets a 600 sq ft minimum floor area per unit for a two-family dwelling, a 7,000 sq ft minimum lot and 50 percent lot coverage, with a 35 ft height limit. Accessory buildings (garages, sheds) are limited to one story or 18 ft in the R-1 and R-1a tables and cannot be lived in as a separate dwelling.

Nothing in Chapter 25 requires the owner to live in either unit of a two-family dwelling, in the district use lists, the two-family definition or the general requirements. Nebraska has no state rule on ADU owner occupancy.

The off-street parking table requires one space per dwelling unit for residential uses, so converting a house to a two-family dwelling requires a second off-street space. Only the C-1 Central Business District is exempt from off-street parking.

In R-1a and R-4 a two-family dwelling is a principal permitted use that needs only a building permit and zoning review. In R-1 it is a conditional use: the Planning Commission holds a noticed public hearing under Neb. Rev. Stat. 19-904 and 19-905, makes written findings and may attach conditions. Ord. 4366 (passed 2-2-2026) renamed the old special permit to the conditional use permit and added an expiration for permits that are not used, but kept the Planning Commission hearing.

Chapter 25 does not restrict renting either unit of a two-family dwelling, and the municipal code has no rental registration or short-term rental licensing. The city's occupation tax on hotel accommodations covers any facility offering sleeping space to the public for a consideration (including tourist homes, lodging houses and bed and breakfasts) for stays of 30 continuous days or less, which can reach a short-term rental. Neb. Rev. Stat. 18-1758 bars Nebraska cities from prohibiting short-term rentals.