1. Purpose. To require and set minimum standards for outdoor lighting to:
A. Provide for and control lighting in outdoor public places where public health, safety and welfare are potential concerns.
B. Protect drivers and pedestrians from the glare of non-vehicular light sources.
C. Protect neighbors and the night sky from nuisance glare and light trespass from improperly selected or poorly placed, aimed, applied, maintained or shielded light sources.
D. Promote energy efficient lighting design and operation.
E. Protect and retain the intended visual character of the various municipality venues.
2. Applicability.
A. All uses within the Borough where there is outdoor lighting including, but not limited to, residential, multi-family residential, commercial, industrial, public and private recreational/sports, institutional uses, and sign, billboard, architectural and landscape lighting.
B. Temporary seasonal decorative lighting and emergency lighting are exempt from all but the glare-control requirements of this Section.
C. Emergency lighting, as may be required by any public agency while engaged in the performance of their duties, is exempt.
3. Definitions.
FOOTCANDLE - unit of light density incident on a plane (assumed to be horizontal unless otherwise specified), stated in lumens per square foot and measurable with an illuminance meter, aka light meter.
FULL CUTOFF - attribute of a lighting fixture from which no light is emitted at or above a horizontal plane drawn through the bottom of the fixture and no more than 10% of the lamp’s intensity is emitted at or above an angle 10º below that horizontal plane, at all lateral angles around the fixture.
FULLY SHIELDED - attribute of a lighting fixture provided with internal and/or external shields and louvers to prevent brightness from lamps, reflectors, refractors and lenses from causing glare at normal viewing angles.
GLARE - excessive brightness in the field of view that causes loss in visual performance or annoyance, to jeopardize health, safety or welfare.
ILLUMINANCE - quantity of light, measured in footcandles.
LIGHT TRESPASS - light emitted by a lighting fixture or installation, which is cast beyond the boundaries of the property on which the lighting installation is sited.
LUMEN - as used in the context of this Section, the light-output rating of a lamp (light bulb).
4. Criteria.
A. Illumination Levels. Lighting, where required by this Section or otherwise required or allowed by the Borough, shall have intensities and uniformities and glare control in accordance with the current recommended practices of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) as contained in the IESNA Lighting Handbook and applicable recommended practices, except as may otherwise be required by the Borough.
B. Lighting Fixture Design.
(1) Fixtures shall be of a type and design appropriate to the lighting application and shall be aesthetically acceptable to the Borough.
(2) For the lighting of predominantly horizontal surfaces such as, but not limited to parking areas, roadways, vehicular and pedestrian passage areas, merchandising and storage areas, automotive-fuel dispensing facilities, automotive sales areas, loading docks, cul-de-sacs, active and passive recreational areas, building entrances, sidewalks, bicycle and pedestrian paths, and site entrances, fixtures shall be aimed straight down and shall meet IESNA full-cutoff criteria. Fixtures with an aggregate rated lamp lumen output per fixture that does not exceed the rated output of a standard 60-watt incandescent lamp, i.e., 1,000 lumens, are exempt from the requirements of this paragraph.
(3). For the lighting of predominantly non-horizontal surfaces such as, but not limited to, facades, landscaping, signs, billboards, fountains, displays and statuary, fixtures shall be fully shielded and shall be installed and aimed so as to not project their output into the windows of neighboring residences, adjacent uses, past the object being illuminated, skyward or onto a public roadway. Fixtures with an aggregate rated lamp lumen output per fixture that does not exceed the rated output of a standard 60- watt incandescent lamp, i.e., 1,000 lumens, are exempt from the requirements of this subsection.
(4) “Barn lights,” aka “dusk-to-dawn lights,” where visible form other properties, shall not be permitted unless fully shielded.
C. Installation.
(1) Electrical feeds for lighting poles shall be run underground, not overhead.
(2) Poles supporting lighting fixtures for the illumination of parking areas and located directly behind parking spaces, or where they could be hit by snow plows, shall be placed a minimum of 5 feet outside paved area or tire stops, or placed on concrete pedestals at least 30 inches high above the pavement, or suitably protected by other municipality-approved means.
(3) Pole mounted fixtures for the illumination of horizontal tasks shall be aimed straight down.
5. Plan Submission. Lighting plans, when requested by the Borough, shall be submitted for variance, zoning permit or special exception applications for review and approval, in accordance with the plan-submission information requirements specified in Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance [Chapter 22
], “Lighting Requirements and Design Standards.”
6. Recreational Uses. When facilities for such outdoor recreational activities as, but not limited to, baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, track, football and miniature golf are specifically permitted by the Borough for operation during hours of darkness, the following requirements shall apply:
A. Lighting shall be accomplished through the use of fixtures conforming to IESNA full-cutoff criteria. The Borough may consider the use of other than full-cutoff fixtures only when it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Borough that acceptable control of glare and light trespass can be achieved, taking into account the proximity of the facility to adjacent properties that could be adversely impacted. Such a proposal shall be accompanied by a visual impact plan as described in Chapter 22, “Subdivision and Land Development,” Part 6, §22- 602(8)(F)(6).
B. Sporting events shall be timed to end at such time that all lighting in the sports facility, other than lighting for safe exit of patrons, can be extinguished by 10 p.m., regardless of such occurrences as extra innings or overtimes.
C. Golf driving ranges, racetracks, trap-shooting facilities and other sports necessitating the horizontal or near horizontal projection of illumination shall not be artificially illuminated.
D. The following outdoor recreational facilities shall not be illuminated if located within a residential district or sited on a nonresidential property located within 1,000 feet of a residential use: basketball, baseball, football, soccer, miniature golf, tennis, track.
E. Maximum mounting heights for recreational lighting shall be in accordance with the following:
(1) Basketball | 20 feet |
(2) Football | 70 feet |
(3) Soccer | 70 feet |
(4) Little League Baseball | |
(a) 200 feet radius | 60 feet |
(b) 300 feet radius | 70 feet |
(5) Miniature Golf | 20 feet |
(6) Swimming Pool Aprons | 20 feet |
(7) Tennis | 20 feet |
(8) Track | 20 feet |
7. Control of Nuisance and Disabling Glare.
A. All lighting shall be aimed, located, designed, fitted and maintained so as not to present a hazard to drivers or pedestrians by impairing their ability to safely traverse and so as not to create a nuisance by projecting or reflecting objectionable light onto a neighboring use or property.
B. Floodlights and spotlights, where their use is specifically approved by the Borough, shall be so shielded, installed and aimed that they do not project their output into the windows of neighboring residences, adjacent uses, past the object being illuminated, skyward or onto a public roadway or pedestrian way.
C. Parking facility and vehicular and pedestrian way lighting (except for safety and security applications and all-night business operations), for commercial, industrial, recreational and institutional uses shall be automatically extinguished no later than one hour after the close of business or facility operation. When safety or security lighting is proposed for after-hours illumination, it shall not be in excess of 33% of the number of fixtures required or permitted for illumination during regular business hours.
D. Illumination for signs, billboards, building facades and/or surrounding landscapes for decorative, advertising or aesthetic purposes is prohibited between 11 p.m. and dawn, except that such lighting situated on the premises for a commercial establishment may remain illuminated while the establishment is actually open for business, and until 1 hour after closing.
E. Vegetation screens shall not be employed to serve as the primary means for controlling glare. Rather, glare control shall be achieved primarily through the use of such means as cutoff fixtures, shields and baffles, and appropriate application of fixture mounting height, wattage, aiming angle and fixture placement.
F. The illumination projected from any property to a residential use shall at no time exceed 0.1 footcandle, measured line-of-sight from any point on the receiving property.
G. The illumination projected from any property to a nonresidential use at no time shall exceed 1.0 footcandle, measured line-of-sight from any point on the receiving property.
H. Externally illuminated billboards and signs shall be lighted by fixtures mounted at the top of the billboard or sign and aimed downward. The fixtures shall be designed, shielded and aimed to limit the light output onto and not beyond the sign or billboard.
I. Except for certain recreational lighting, fixtures meeting IESNA full-cutoff criteria shall not be mounted in excess of 20 feet above finished grade. Fixtures not meeting IESNA full-cutoff criteria shall not be mounted in excess of 16 feet above finished grade. For recreational lighting maximum mounting height requirements, subsection (6)(E) above.
J. The United States and the State flag shall be permitted to be illuminated from dusk till dawn. All other flags shall not be illuminated past 11 p.m. Flag lighting sources shall not exceed 10,000 lumens per flagpole. The light source shall have a beam spread no greater than necessary to illuminate the flag.
K. Under-canopy lighting, for such applications as gas/service stations, hotel/theater marquees, fast-food/bank/drugstore drive-ups, shall be accomplished using flat- lens full-cutoff fixtures aimed straight down and shielded in such a manner that the lowest opaque edge of the fixture shall be below the light source at all lateral angles. The average illumination intensity in the area directly below the canopy shall not exceed 20 maintained footcandles and the maximum intensity shall not exceed 40 maintained footcandles.
L. The use of white strobe lighting for tall structures such as smokestacks, chimneys and radio / communications / television towers is prohibited during hours of darkness, except as specifically required by FAA.
M. Glare or Heat. Any operation producing intense glare or heat shall be conducted within an enclosed building or with other effective screening in such a manner as to make such glare or heat completely imperceptible from any point along the property line. No heat from any use shall be sensed at any property line to the extent of raising the ambient temperature of air or materials more than 5ºF. Any operation or activity that produces glare shall be conducted so that direct or indirect light from the source shall not cause illumination in excess of 0.5 footcandles measured at the property line.
8. Nonconforming Lighting. Any lighting fixture or lighting installation existing on the effective date of this Section that does not conform with the requirements of this Section, shall be considered as a lawful nonconformance. A nonconforming lighting fixture or lighting installation shall be made to conform with the requirements of this Section when:
A. Minor corrective action, such as re-aiming or shielding can achieve conformity with the applicable requirements of this Section.
B. It is deemed by the Borough to create a safety hazard.
C. It is replaced by another fixture or fixtures, abandoned, relocated or repaired (except for routine maintenance).
D. There is a change in use of the property.
E. All lighting not in compliance with this Section 10 years hence, shall immediately be brought into compliance.
9. Measurement.
A. Lighting levels shall be measured in footcandles. Measurement shall be taken with a direct reading portable light meter or light reading equipment recommended by the Borough Engineer.
B. Method. Readings shall be taken by qualified personnel so that the light reading meter has been exposed long enough to provide a constant reading. Measurements shall be made after dark with the light sources in question on, then with the same sources off. The difference between the two readings shall be compared to the maximum permitted illumination at the property lien at ground level. This procedure eliminates the effects of moonlight and other ambient light.
10. Flickering or flashing of lights shall be prohibited.
11. Light sources or luminaries shall not be located within required buffer yard areas except for pedestrian walkways.
(Ord. 462, 8/14/1995; as added by Ord. 560, 6/13/2005)