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County airports and County correctional institutions located in the unincorporated area of the County shall be subject to the following special requirements:
(a) Outdoor lighting at a County airport in an area not regulated by state or federal law, such as a parking lot or outside building, shall be fully shielded and use low pressure sodium or narrow spectrum amber LED or another light source with the same limited spectrum.
(b) Outdoor lighting at a County correctional institution in an area not regulated by state or federal law, such as a parking lot, shall be fully shielded and use low pressure sodium or narrow spectrum amber LED or another light source with the same limited spectrum.
(Added by Ord. No. 9974 (N.S.), effective 4-3-09; amended by Ord. No. 10691 (N.S.), effective 12-18-20)
Outdoor recreation, sport courts, or athletic field lighting may be exempted from the shielding, CCT, and hours of operation requirements provided that the following conditions are met:
(a) Facilities in Zone A and Zone B:
(1) Lighting at an outdoor recreational facility may remain on to allow an organized recreational event in progress to be completed, provided the event and the facility are not violating the terms of any permit issued by the County or any law or regulation.
(b) Facilities in Zone C:
(1) The design and installation of lighting for outdoor recreation, sport courts, or athletic fields shall follow the illuminance and uniformity guidelines of the IES according to the appropriate class of play; and
(2) The correlated color temperature of the lighting is ≤ 4,200K as listed on the lamp or luminaire manufacturer specification sheets; and
(3) The luminaires shall utilize internal or external shielding in order to minimize uplight and off-site direct visibility of the light sources. A small amount of uplighting is permitted for those activities where the playing unit (ball, etc.) can exceed the height of the luminaires; and
(4) Field lighting is provided exclusively for the illumination of the surface of play and viewing stands and not for other applications, and shall not exceed 50 percent of the full light output when the field is being utilized for other than practice and tournament play; and
(5) Off-site impacts (spill light/light trespass) shall be limited to ≤ 2.0 vertical footcandles at any of the property lines (based upon maintained lumen values) unless approved otherwise by the building official. A photometric study documenting compliance with the horizontal on-site illuminance level(s) (field, court, etc.) at the IES-recommended calculation height, and the perimeter vertical spill illuminance at 5 feet above the adjacent grade and oriented perpendicular into the site, must be included with the plan submittal; and
(6) Lights must be extinguished by 10:00 p.m. or one hour after the end of play, whichever is later; and
(7) Title 24-compliant timing or central control devices must be installed to prevent the lighting from being left on later than one hour after the facility is occupied.
(Added by Ord. No. 10691 (N.S.), effective 12-18-20)
All lighting attached to fuel canopies within Zone C shall meet the following additional requirements:
(a) The maintained illuminance levels shall not exceed 120 percent of IES- recommended practice for low ambient light zones; and
(b) Luminaires for new and rebuilt canopies are to be recessed or semi-recessed into the canopy and possess a flat lens that resides at ≤ 2.5 inches below the canopy ceiling. Replacement luminaires for existing canopies may be surface mounted as long as there is a flat lens and it resides higher than the bottom edge of the perimeter canopy structure. Neither external nor internal lighting of the perimeter structure is allowed unless it exists at the time this updated ordinance was adopted, and then still needs to be brought into compliance within 10 years from the date of adoption of this ordinance.
(Added by Ord. No. 10691 (N.S.), effective 12-18-20)
An outdoor luminaire in any of the following categories is exempt from the requirements of this chapter:
(a) An outdoor luminaire producing light directly by the combustion of a fossil fuel such as a kerosene lantern or gas lamp.
(b) A luminaire used for a holiday decoration, provided it is used for no more than 60 days in a 12-month period and is off between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and sunrise.
(c) Lighting that illuminates a United States or California flag and the flagpole to which the flag is affixed. All luminaires or combination of luminaires shall be shielded as necessary so that the light source is not visible from the property line. In Zone C, luminaires in excess of 4,050 lumens shall be affixed to the top of the flagpole and be aimed downward.
(d) Outdoor lighting for a facility required by state or federal law to have outdoor lighting that does not comply with this chapter. A person seeking an exemption under this subsection shall request an exemption at that time the person submits the application for the permit required by the County Electrical Code. The applicant shall submit proof along with the application for the permit that demonstrates the applicant is entitled to an exemption under this subsection.
(e) Life-safety luminaires that only operate via battery or generator during a power failure.
(f) Outdoor lighting for a state or federal facility or activity for which there is no practicable alternative that complies with one or more of the specific requirements of this chapter.
(Added by Ord. No. 10691 (N.S.), effective 12-18-20)
(a) A person may submit a written request to the building department for a temporary exemption from the requirements of this chapter. The request shall be submitted on a form provided by the building official. The fee for the temporary exemption shall be as provided in section 362.1 of the County Administrative Code.
(b) A temporary exemption under this section shall only be granted if the applicant is able to establish that: (1) an exemption is necessary during a community event or some other event that benefits the public and the public benefit outweighs any harm that might result to the public or any private person or (2) the exemption is necessary due to an emergency that is behind the control of the applicant and that no other reasonable alternative exists. No temporary exemption shall be granted when the outdoor lighting for which a temporary exemption is requested has been installed in violation of this chapter.
(c) The building official shall have ten days from the date the applicant submits a complete request for a temporary exemption to approve or disapprove the request. The building official shall notify the applicant of the decision in writing.
(d) The temporary exemption shall be valid for no more than 30 consecutive days from the date the County approves the request. Upon request from the applicant, the County, upon receipt of evidence that a condition justifying the continuation of the exemption exists, may extend the exemption for up to an additional 30 consecutive days. The request for renewal shall be processed in the same manner as an original request. No exemption for an outdoor luminaire shall be granted for more than 60 days during any 12 month period.
(e) If the building official denies the request for a temporary exemption the applicant may request that the chief of the Building Division review the denial. The applicant shall submit the request for review in writing within 15 days from the date of the denial. The fee for the review shall be the same as the fee for the request for a temporary exemption. The decision by the chief of the Building Division shall be final.
(Added by Ord. No. 9974 (N.S.), effective 4-3-09; amended by Ord. No. 10691 (N.S.), effective 12-18-20)