Southeast City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XVII
Outdoor Lighting 1
§ 138-97 Purpose.
This article regulates and restricts the location, construction and use of artificial lighting in both commercial and residential zoning districts in order to promote and protect the public health, safety, and welfare by regulating outdoor lighting of all types. It is intended to protect property values, create a more attractive residential and economic and business climate, enhance and protect the physical appearance of the community, preserve the scenic and natural beauty of the Town, and provide a more enjoyable and pleasing community.
§ 138-98 Lighting regulations.
[Amended 8-20-2015 by L.L. No. 7-2015]
A.
Light trespass. Any outdoor lighting in any zoning district (residential or commercial) shall be arranged in such a way that no direct glare is cast toward any highway or adjacent property, and luminary devices shall be hooded and/or arranged so that the source of the illumination is not visible from such public rights-of-way or other properties.
(1)
All new light fixtures, except street lighting, shall be designed, installed and maintained to prevent light trespass, as specified below.
(a)
At the lot lines of the subject property, illumination from the light fixtures shall not exceed 0.1 footcandle on residentially zoned property or 0.5 footcandle on nonresidentially zoned property, measured in a vertical plane.
(b)
Outdoor light fixtures shall be directed so that there will be no direct beams of light or emissions onto adjacent property. Light fixtures near adjacent property may require additional shielding devices to prevent light trespass.
(c)
This section does not apply to temporary decorative lighting that is installed for a period of one month or less per year.
(d)
Where exterior lights abut sensitive natural areas such as wetlands and wooded areas, shielding shall be installed to prevent light spillover from reaching these sensitive natural areas.
(e)
Other upward-directed architectural, landscape and decorative lighting shall not be visible above the building roofline, tree, or other structure which is being illuminated.
B.
Site lighting shall be reduced to a minimum level to maintain site security at the close of business and shall be controlled by motion detectors to minimize light pollution.
C.
Use of energy efficient and cost-saving bulbs, such as compact fluorescent (CFL) and light-emitting diode (LED), shall be encouraged.
D.
Lighting plan.
(1)
An outdoor lighting plan, including all exterior building-mounted lights, all pole-mounted lights, all sign lights, and all ground-mounted lights, shall be submitted to the Planning Board as part of site plan review pursuant to § 138-41E(2)(c)[2][d]. Any modification to an approved lighting plan, whether or not other modifications to the approved site plan are being considered, requires review and approval by the Planning Board.
(2)
The lighting plan shall include, at a minimum:
(a)
Safety or functional justification for all proposed outdoor lighting fixtures, whether on buildings, poles, or any other structure.
(b)
How the proposed fixtures will minimize off-site light spillage.
(c)
Hours of operation of individual lighting fixtures or systems.
(d)
Analysis of light spillage view sheds from all surrounding developed and undeveloped property.
(e)
Specifications of all proposed fixtures, including light intensity ratings and coverage ratings.
(f)
Illuminance values for all developed portions of the site in footcandles (Fc), including the following calculated values: average, maximum, minimum, average:minimum ratio, maximum:minimum ratio. Average illuminance values shall only be calculated for developed portions of the property. Any portion of the property to remain undeveloped shall not be illuminated.
(g)
An estimate of annual energy savings in kilowatt-hours (kwh) and dollars resulting from the use of timing systems and lower-intensity fixtures.
(3)
Lighting plans shall be prepared in accordance with the guidelines established in the most recent edition of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) Lighting Handbook.
(4)
The lighting plan shall account for all off-site lighting (e.g., adjacent properties, streetlighting) that may increase minimum, maximum, or average values.
(5)
The lighting plan shall be prepared in coordination with the site plan and landscaping plan to take into account any structures or landscaping that may affect light distribution across the site.
(6)
Any lighting plan for banks or automatic teller machines must conform to the New York State ATM Safety Act as administered by the New York State Department of Financial Services.
F.
In all districts, flashing, intermittent, moving or chaser lights or lighting of varying intensity shall be prohibited.
G.
Recreational sports facility lighting shall comply with Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) recommendations and shall be shielded whenever possible (see "Special Regulations" Section 8).
H.
Except as otherwise required by New York State or federal law for specific uses such as ATMs or gasoline stations, lighting in all commercial zoning districts shall be required to comply with the following:
(1)
Unshielded wall packs and floodlights are prohibited.
(2)
All other outdoor lighting shall use shielded lighting fixtures.
(3)
All floodlight types of fixtures shall be permanently affixed in the approved position.
(4)
Illuminance requirements. Outdoor lighting where required or permitted by this chapter, shall have intensities and uniformity ratios in accordance with the illumination levels listed in the following table:
Horizontal Footcandles On Site | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Max | Ave | Min | U. Ratio | |
5.0 | 3.6 | 0.0 | 4:1 | |
§ 138-99 Preexisting nonconforming sites.
A.
All approved and/or constructed commercial projects within the Town shall submit a lighting plan to the Planning Board in compliance with § 138-98C within six months of the adoption of this article.
B.
The Planning Board may require modification of existing site lighting on any preexisting nonconforming site to meet the requirements of this article.