The following restrictions shall apply to any outdoor lighting located in any district, on parcels where there are parking spaces for five or more vehicles, or where a building, sign, or electrical permit is required for the installation of lighting fixtures.
(A) Lighting plan. Any building, structure, or use of land that requires the review and approval of a parking plan, as specified in § 153.301(B): Parking Plan, shall provide a lighting plan. A lighting plan may also be required, at the determination of the Building Official, when a building, sign, or electrical permit application for lighting fixtures is filed. The lighting plan shall be reviewed and approved by the Building Official and shall provide the following information:
(1) The locations for all site lighting including on-building, security, flood, parking lot lighting, and other lights that may be proposed.
(2) The proposed intensity levels of the lighting throughout the site, indicating footcandle measurements for the subject site and a minimum of 30 feet onto adjacent properties. The initial output of lamp fixtures, as defined by the manufacturer, is the value to be considered in the intensity analysis.
(3) The minimum, maximum, and average intensity/illumination for the site.
(4) Details of all proposed outdoor lighting fixtures including manufacturer, model, and style of the fixture. A graphic representation of the fixture is requested. The fixture lamp type (i.e., LED, metal halide, etc.) shall be indicated on the proposed plans.
(5) The proposed height of all lighting fixtures.
(6) The hours of use of the proposed lighting fixtures.
(7) The property lines and rights-of-way lines for the subject site and at least 50 feet of the adjacent properties.
(B) Height of lighting.
(1) Lighting height should not exceed the permitted building height or the maximum height allowed per Table 351-1: Outdoor Lighting Design Standards, whichever is less.
(2) The guidelines in Table 351-1: Outdoor Lighting Design Standards provided based on the activity level of the proposed use. Heights in excess of these guidelines may be approved by the Planning Commission when due cause is indicated by the property owner.
Activity Level | Maximum Height Regulation s | Average Illumination | Maximum Illumination | Example Uses |
Low | 15 feet | 1.0 footcandle | 5.0 footcandles | Multi-family dwellings, education facilities, places of worship, local commercial, and industrial uses |
Medium | 24 feet | 2.0 footcandles | 10.0 footcandles | Community and neighborhood shopping centers, office parks, hospitals, commuter lots, community facilities (cultural, civic, recreational) |
High | 32 feet | 3.0 footcandles | 15.0 footcandles | Regional shopping centers, motorist services at expressway interchanges, athletic facilities, regional cultural or civic facilities |
(C) Illumination standards.
(1) Uniformity of illumination (maximum/minimum footcandle ratio) should not exceed 15:1.
(2) Illumination of any access drive should not exceed the average footcandles maintained at the adjacent public road.
(3) The maximum illumination permitted in each district type, as demonstrated by a lighting plan, shall be established in Table 351-2: Maximum Illumination Level at the Property Line.
Figure 351-1: Cutoff lighting example
(D) Shielding. All outdoor lighting for non-residential uses shall be located, screened, or shielded so adjacent residential districts or uses are not directly illuminated. Shielding may also be required for high intensity light fixtures to prevent glare to adjacent uses, public rights-of-way, and drivers. Perimeter lighting should be full cutoff fixtures to prevent light trespass onto adjacent residential districts or uses.
(E) Lighting design.
(1) No outdoor lighting shall be of such an intensity or color distortion as to cause glare or to impair the vision of drivers, pedestrians, or adjacent properties.
(2) Shields and/or filters are required for light fixtures with high intensity and glare potential.
(3) All lighting shall be provided by cutoff fixtures with no extended/projected lenses.
(4) All light poles and fixtures should be of a dark, non-reflective color. No striping or other decorative elements are allowed on light poles.
(5) The use of colored lights, neon, and Light Emitting Diodes (LED) strip lighting as building accent lighting, window trimming, and door trimming on either the inside or outside of the building is not allowed unless reviewed and approved by Planning Commission.
(6) All lighting shall be fully functional as designed or the lighting shall be turned off until the time in which such non-functional lighting has been fixed.
(F) Location. Outdoor lighting does not need to comply with any setback requirements of this code, except that no light fixtures or poles shall obstruct vision in the sign triangle as specified in § 153.254(D): Sight Visibility Triangle.
(G) Factors for evaluation. The following factors shall be considered in the evaluation of lighting plans:
(1) Pole height;
(2) Type of luminaire;
(3) Site coverage - average maintained;
(4) Uniformity (both maximum: minimum and average: minimum); and
(5) Intensity at property line.
(H) Exemptions.
(1) All outdoor lighting fixtures producing light directly by the combustion of fossil fuels, such as kerosene lanterns or gas lamps, are exempt from the requirements of this section.
(2) Holiday lighting.
(3) All temporary emergency lighting needed by the Police or Fire Department or other emergency services, including vehicular luminaires.
(I) Special approval. Search lights, laser source lights, or any similar high-intensity light shall not be permitted, except in emergencies by Police and Fire Department personnel or at their discretion, unless a temporary sign/use permit is issued by the Building Official in accordance with § 153.461: Temporary Signs.
(J) Modifications and relamping. Should any outdoor lighting fixture or the type of light source therein be changed after the permit has been issued, a change request must be submitted to the Building Official for his approval, together with adequate information to assure compliance with this section, which must be received prior to substitution.
(K) Nonconforming outdoor lighting.
(1) The nonconforming use of lighting may continue until the luminaire (total fixture, not just the bulb) is replaced, at which point; the lighting shall be subject to all the standards of this subsection with the exception of the maximum height.
(2) When a nonconforming lighting fixture, including the pole or support, is removed, the lighting fixture shall lose its legal nonconforming status and all new lighting shall be subject to all standards of this section.
(Ord. 4-2016, passed 3-2-16; Am. Ord. 04-2020, passed 1-15-20; Am. Ord. 21-2024, passed 6-19-24)