Chambers

Community Overview

Fresh air, open spaces, and friendly people are what makes Chambers the welcoming place it is, located in north central Nebraska and southern Holt County.

Chambers is a small town with economic development as a top priority.  In the last few years, Chambers has gained new businesses and three new buildings.  The Community Center, American Legion, and a Fire Hall, for the active Volunteer Fire Department, were built with major donations from three people.  Donations from the community helped with furnishings for these buildings.  The community raised funds and received a grant to install top-of-the-line playground equipment in the village park.  The Chambers School, K-12, is proud of their students, who highly achieve in academics and sports and are recognized for their outstanding band.

The Chambers Area Chamber of Commerce works together with the help of local people to sponsor celebrations throughout the year including an Easter Egg Hunt, a big 4th of July Celebration and a Christmas Open House.  Their current project is a Homesteaders/Veterans Memorial Park.  Chambers is home to the Holt County Fair & Rodeo.  Chambers residents welcome new faces and businesses to their little town in Nebraska!

For more information, visit: https://www.villageofchambers.org

Commercial Services

With a small town atmosphere, Chambers continues to support its retail businesses and offer a variety of activities through the school and community events.  Chambers is an ideal place to raise a family with a top-notch school system, safe environment, and a variety of activities.  The Chambers’ businesses are supported not only by Chambers residents, but also by all the ranch and farm families in the area.  The availability of employment is within driving distance all over Holt County and more.  A wide range of commercial services are available in O’Neill, 23 miles away.  The residents of the Chambers community have combined talent and a strong work ethic to create an ideal setting in which to work and live.

Machine shops in city: 2
Tool and die services in city: 1
Electric motor repair services in city: 1

Type of newspaper in city: Weekly
Local radio station(s): 3

Number of TV channels received without cable: 1
Cable antenna television serves city: No

Number of protestant churches: 4

Number of lodging facilities in community: 2
Total number of rooms available: 4

Number of banks in city: 1

Chamber of Commerce: Yes
Chamber executive is full-time: No

Schools

Public SchoolsNumber of SchoolsEnrollmentTeacher / Student Ratio
Elementary1761:8
Senior High1431:5

Chambers Public School is proud of its rich tradition of excellence in academics, activities and athletics. The students enjoy the support of parents, community, and an experienced faculty and staff. In addition to a rigorous curriculum, the students have the opportunity to take distant classes as well as in-house college credit classes through Northeast Community College. Approximately 90% of the graduates have pursued post-secondary education. The other 10% take jobs or enter the Military. Graduate surveys indicate that students have been well-prepared for college and the work place. Chambers takes pride in the education they provide to help students achieve the academic, physical, social and emotional foundation needed to become a successful, contributing member of society. Chambers High School has been noted for their outstanding band under the direction of Mr. Duane DeVries and their academic and athletic abilities. Because of the small class size each of the students in Chambers Elementary School receives personal time and attention from the experienced and dedicated elementary staff. A rigorous core curriculum of language arts, math, science, and social studies helps students achieve excellence in and out of the classroom.  Chambers Public School coops with Wheeler Central School in Bartlett for sports.

THOENDEL LEARNING CENTER located in Chambers offers the Davis Dyslexia Correction Program to clients ages eight and older. The one-week, intensive, goal-oriented program is designed for the visual-spatial learner. The program is facilitated by a licensed instructor focusing on techniques, understanding how to resolve confusion with letters, words, and other symbols using their creativity and imagination. Reading exercises eliminate guessing and promote comprehension and improved balance and coordination.

Health Facilities

Medical Personnel in the Community

Medical Doctors / Physician Assistants1
Nurses (registered or practical)1
Veterinarians1

Chambers is 23 miles from the nearest hospital, Avera St. Anthony’s Hospital in O’Neill.  Avera has a medical clinic joined to the hospital.  From that medical clinic a nurse practitioner comes once a week to the Chambers Medical Clinic.  Chambers has an experienced ambulance crew on volunteer duty 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Housing

Median Home Value$137,500
Total Housing Units166
Owner Occupied Units113
Renter Occupied Units23
Vacant Units30

Largest Employers

RankBusiness NameService SectorProduct / ServiceNumber EmployedUnions
1Chambers Public SchoolEducationSchool50Yes
2Lambert MelonsAg ProduceProduce10No
395 West ExpressOther ServicesConvenience Store7No
4Chambers State BankFinanceBank / Insurance7No
5Village MarketOther ServicesGrocery Store7No
6Duba TrailersManufacturingCustomized Trailers6No
7Green AcresGas Station/Fuel TruckingService Station5No
8Hubel Iron & WeldingManufacturingIron/Welding4No
9Boog's WeldingManufacturingWelding and Manufacturing3No
10K & MUtilityPhone Company3No

Municipal Services

Type of GovernmentVillage Board
Comprehensive City PlanNo
City ManagerNo
City EngineerNo
City Zoning Ordinance in EffectNo
County Zoning Ordinance in EffectYes
Garbage Service Provider6 Star Sanitation
Public Library in CityNo
Percent of Streets Paved100%
Number Volunteer Fire Department Personnel30
Fire Insurance ClassInside City: 5, Outside City: 8-10

Standard building codes are enforced in the Village of Chambers. The O’Neill Public Library, 23 miles away, contains 36,126 volumes and has an average annual circulation of 97,341. The library, with 2,493 patrons, is part of the Nebraska Interlibrary Book Loan Program. Story hour is held during the summer months and other special times during the year. Books and records for the blind are also provided. There are six computers with Internet access available to Library patrons. The Chambers Volunteer Fire Department consists of 30 fire fighters including 11 EMT’s and 1 paramedic. A new fire house was built in 2009 with funds donated by a local resident and many volunteer hours. There are 26 fire hydrants in Chambers.

Population

General Population Stats

AreaProjected Population 2028Population 2023Census Year: 2020% Change
Chambers3112992681.1%
Holt County9,90310,02210,4030.9%
Esri forecasts for 2023 and 2028. U.S. Census Bureau 2000 and 2010 decennial Census data converted by Esri into 2020 geography.

County Age Distribution (2023)

Age0-1920-3435-4445-6465+Total% Split
Male1,1637595061.4671,1635,05850.5 %
Female1,0926954471,4401,3404,96449.5 %
Total2,2551,4549532,9072.50310,022
Median Age (2023): 47.7
Source: Esri forecasts for 2023 and 2028. U.S. Census Bureau 2000 and 2010 decennial Census data converted by Esri into 2020 geography.

Tax Structure

Actual Valuation of City: $8,196,469 (Year 2015)

Real Property Tax Rates ($ per $100 of actual value)

CityCountySchoolOtherTotal Real Property
$0.449999$0.261542$0.703716$0.210873$1.626130

Bond Indebtedness

County
None

All real property is subject to tax at market value.  Agricultural land is valued at 72 percent of its market value.  Personal property that is used in a trade or business and is depreciable is subject to tax at its “net book value”.  All other personal property is exempt from taxation.

Transportation

Number & Type of Roads Serving Community

Type of RoadFederalStateCounty
Interstate Highways
Limited Access, Four-Lane Highways
Improved Two-Lane Highways11

Nearest Highways

Highway NameMiles
Miles to Nearest Interstate HighwayInterstate 8097
Miles to Nearest Four-Lane HighwayUS Hwy 275 near Battle Creek80

Motor Freight Carriers

More than 13,500 licensed motor carriers with worldwide connections are based in Nebraska and serve businesses throughout North America.

Transit Time for Carload or Truckload Lots

DestinationDistance by Highway MilesDays by RailroadDays by Motor Freight
Omaha199N/A1 Day
Lincoln199N/A1 Day
Chicago674N/A1-2 Days
Dallas737N/A2-3 Days
Denver505N/A1-2 Days
Kansas City390N/A1-2 Days
Los Angeles1517N/A2-3 Days
Minneapolis454N/A1-2 Days
New York1448N/A3-5 Days
St. Louis641N/A2-3 Days

Air

Distance to nearest public airport25 minutes
Elevation2,031 feet
Length of longest runway4,400 feet
Runway lightedYes
Private aircraft storage availableYes
Private aircraft maintenance availableYes
Distance to nearest commercial air transportation96 minutes

Distance to Nearest International Airport

Name of AirportMiles to Airport
from Community
Omaha Eppley International215
Kansas City International377
Denver International469

Facilities at the John L. Bakerfield, NW of O’Neill, includes 100 low lead fuel, beacon, VOR, overnight hangar, storage, overnight lodging, next day air freight, wind sock, wind tee, major and minor repair, tie down, terminal, and automatic weather service.

Rail

Community served by railroad?No
Distance to Nearest Railroad23 Miles
Functional Piggyback Ramp AvailableNo
Distance to Nearest Piggyback Service75 miles

Utilities

Electricity

State electric power deregulated?No
Wholesale SupplierNiobrara Valley EMC

Electric System Operator

Niobrara Valley EMC

Phone:(402) 336-2803
Website: www.nvemc.org
Email: NiobraraValley@nvemc.org

The Village of Chambers and the rural area surrounding Chambers are served electric power from Niobrara Valley Electric Membership Corporation (EMC), a wholesale power customer of NPPD. EMC provides service at a distribution voltage of 7,200 with 2,550 miles of distribution lines and 13 substations at three voltages of 34,500 volts, 69,000 volts, and 115,000 volts. Service is provided through 95 miles of transmission lines at 34.5 kV and 69 kV. For more information regarding electrical services in the Niobrara Valley EMC service area, contact John Hoke, general manager, O’Neill, Nebraska, (402) 336-2803, JohnH@nvemc.org, www.nvemc.org.

Natural Gas

Natural Gas Service AvailableNo

Water

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The water system, serving 100 percent of the village population, has a combined pumping capacity of 1,350 gallons per minute and an overhead storage capacity of 50,000 gallons. The average daily demand on the system is 60,800 gallons, and the historic peak daily demand is 130,000 gallons. The system has a maximum capacity of 770,000 gallons per day. The static pressure is 50 pounds per square inch. The chemical analysis of the water system is within the required limits.

Sanitation / Waste Water

Name of ProviderVillage of Chambers
Type of ServiceMunicipal Sanitary Service
Sewer Connection FeeNo

Chambers is served by a four-cell lagoon system designed to serve a population of 375. Two cells were built in 1967 and two were built in 1985. The average daily capacity is 63,000 gallons, the average daily flow is 73,000 gallons, and the historic peak is 167,000 gallons. Improvements to the sewerage system in the next five years include rehabilitating the lagoons at an approximate cost of $1,300,000.

Telecommunications

Name of Local Service ProviderK & M Telephone
Number of Long Distance Service Providers5

K & M Telephone provides telecommunications services for the villages of Chambers and Inman with a digital central office in Chambers. DMS 10 switching is available along with DSL. Extended area service is available to Chambers, Inman, and O’Neill.