(A) Lighting design. Outdoor lighting shall be designed to provide the minimum lighting necessary to ensure adequate safety, visibility, and comfort, and not create or cause objectionable glare or light trespass as viewed from other properties and/or from public rights-of-way.
(B) Shielding requirement. Except as otherwise specified in this chapter, outdoor lighting, regardless of lumen output, shall be fully shielded and aimed downward so as to minimize glare and prevent light pollution. All outdoor lighting fixtures shall be full cut-off fixtures. No outdoor lighting fixture shall permit light to shine above the horizontal plane to pollute the night sky or off the property on which it is installed.
(C) Light trespass. Except as otherwise specified in this chapter, light trespass beyond property boundaries shall be deemed a nuisance and in non-compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(1) General. The source of the light (the bulb, light emitting diode, or any other light emitting device), a refractive or non-refractive lens cover, or reflector shall not be visible in a direct line of sight from any other property or public right-of-way;
(2) Porchlights and sconces. Residential porchlights and wall sconces may be unshielded and light from such fixture may be visible from beyond the property line provided the fixture has a medium to dark toned, semi-opaque diffuser installed to reduce glare or the fixture has a flat-bottomed LED light emitter or other flat-bottomed light source that prevents light from shining off the property or upward into the night sky. In no case shall the bulb, other luminous element, reflective surface, or lens cover be visible from off the property.
(D) Correlated color temperature. All outdoor lighting, regardless of type, except as exempted herein, shall have a correlated color temperature (CCT) not to exceed 3000 degrees Kelvin as recommended by the American Medical Association in order to minimize the adverse effects on human health of bluish-white light at higher CCTs. A CCT of 2,700 degrees Kelvin or lower (yellowish, warm light) is preferred for all lighting.
(E) Lumen limitations.
(1) Nonresidential property. To prevent over-lighting, total outdoor light output on any nonresidential property shall not exceed 100,000 initial lumens per acre in any contiguous illuminated area. This lumen per acre limitation is an upper limit, not a design goal. Illumination design should be at the lowest levels that meet the reasonable requirements of the task. Governmental-owned streetlights used for illumination of public rights-of-way are exempted from the lumen cap requirement.
(2) Residential property. Total outdoor light output (excluding governmental owned streetlights used for illumination of public rights-of-way) on any residential property shall not exceed 20,000 lumens per acre in any contiguous illuminated area.
(3) Rebuttable presumption. The city may cite a property owner for a violation of lumen limitation requirements under a rebuttable presumption that a violation exists unless contested and proven otherwise by the owner of the property or their designated agent. The property owner or their designated agent shall be responsible for calculating the total number of lumens per acre on the property and for informing the city of the methodology used in the calculations. The city shall determine if the calculations are reasonable. In the event of disagreement, the owner of the property may hire a professional lighting consultant to substantiate the actual number of lumens per net acre.
(F) Fixture limitations. The maximum illumination on any outdoor surface or object, including signs, from all fixtures or light sources, whether installed before or after the effective date of this chapter, including lighting of externally illuminated and internally illuminated signs, shall not exceed:
(1) Nonresidential property. Eighteen footcandles where a business exists and is open; or three footcandles in where a business is closed or does not exist.
(2) Residential property. Six footcandles.
(3) Rebuttable presumption. The city may cite a property owner for a violation of fixture limitation requirements under a rebuttable presumption that a violation exists unless contested and proven otherwise by the owner of the property or their designated agent. The property owner or their designated agent shall be responsible for measuring the footcandles and for informing the city of the methodology used in the calculations. The city shall determine if the calculations are reasonable. In the event of disagreement, the owner of the property may hire a professional lighting consultant to substantiate the actual footcandles.
(G) Outdoor recreational facilities. Lighting for playing fields, playing courts, swimming pools, skateboard parks, rodeo arenas, and similar recreational facilities, whether public or private, are exempt from the lumens per net acre limit. However, all such facilities whether public or private shall comply with the requirements of State of Texas Health and Safety Code.
(Ord. 2022-08-04, passed 8-4-2022)