Chapter 18.40
EXTERIOR LIGHTING STANDARDS

Sections:

18.40.010    Purpose.

18.40.020    Applicability.

18.40.030    General requirements.

18.40.040    Lighting plan requirements.

18.40.050    Lighting standards for uses within 50 feet of residential zones.

18.40.060    Open-air parking lot lighting.

18.40.070    Canopy lighting and lighting of service stations.

18.40.080    Lighting of outdoor performance, sport and recreation facilities.

18.40.090    Architectural accent lighting.

18.40.100    Lighting of landscaping.

18.40.010 Purpose.

The purposes of this chapter are to: regu­late exterior lighting in order to avoid unsafe and unpleasant conditions as the result of poorly designed or installed exterior lighting; discourage excessive lighting; regulate the type of light fixtures, lamps and standards; protect adjacent properties and residential units from the adverse effects associated with nonresidential and multifamily exterior light­ing; protect Snoqualmie Valley views from the adverse effects of lighting; minimize light spill into the dark night sky. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.020 Applicability.

A. A lighting plan shall be required for projects as follows:

1. When an exterior lighting installa­tion is part of a new development proposal requiring site plan review, a conditional use permit, or other development application that requires outside lighting or is a commercial project adjacent to property zoned LDR or HDR; and

2. For projects undergoing redevelop­ment, expansion or remodel when the redevel­opment requires site plan approval, or for tenant improvements or other minor building improvements when exterior lighting is pro­posed to be installed or modified.

B. These regulations do not apply to sub­divisions or individual dwelling units, with the exception of common areas. Examples of com­mon areas include, but are not limited to, path­ways, clubhouses, parking lots and play areas.

C. These regulations are not applicable to public rights-of-way.

D. These regulations do not apply to light­ing necessary for emergency equipment and work conducted in the interests of law enforce­ment or for the safety, health, or welfare of the public.

E. Sign lighting is governed by Chapter 18.20 NBMC, Sign Regulations. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.030 General requirements.

A. To reduce overall energy consumption and eliminate unneeded lighting, exterior lighting installations shall include timers, dim­mers, sensors, and/or photocell controllers that turn the lights off during daylight hours or when lighting is not needed.

B. Exterior lighting installations shall be designed to avoid harsh contrasts in lighting levels.

C. Light heads for parking lots and display area light fixtures shall not have bulbs or reflectors that project below the bottom rim of the fixture unless shielded by a softening dif­fuser.

D. Lighting levels shall not exceed 0.2 foot-candles measured five feet from an exte­rior property line.

An exception may be approved by the director adjacent to rights-of-way when it is not is conflict with the goals of this section.

E. Fixtures and lighting systems shall be maintained in good working order.

F. Vegetation and landscaping shall be maintained in a manner that does not obstruct security lighting.

G. Open-air parking lot lighting shall be designed to provide sufficient illumination for comfort and safety and shall be adequate to facilitate the activities taking place in a given location.

H. Lighting fixtures shall be of a type or adequately shielded to prevent glare from nor­mal viewing angles.

I. Lighting fixture and pole types may be specified and required by the city.

J. Lighting of critical areas and buffers shall not be permitted.

K. Lighting shall be consistent with NBMC 18.34.120, Site lighting, and Table 18.10.050(8.40), Glare. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.040 Lighting plan requirements.

The applicant shall submit to the planning department sufficient information, in the form of an overall exterior lighting plan, to enable the director to determine that the applicable provisions will be satisfied.

The exterior lighting plan shall include, at a minimum, the following information:

A. Manufacturer specification sheets, cut sheets or other manufacturer provided infor­mation for all proposed lighting fixtures.

B. The proposed location, mounting height, and aiming point of all exterior lighting fixtures.

C. If building elevations are proposed for illumination, drawings shall be provided for all relevant building elevations showing the fix­tures, the portions of the elevations to be illu­minated, the luminance levels of the elevations, and the aiming point for any remote light fixture. If only architectural lighting below five foot-candles is proposed, this sec­tion or any portion of it may be waived by the director.

D. A brief written narrative which describes the objectives of the lighting.

E. Photometric data, Color Rendering Index (CRI) of all lamps (bulbs), and other descriptive information of the fixtures, and, if applicable or required, designation as Illumi­nating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) “cut-off” fixtures.

F. A computer generated photometric grid showing foot-candle readings every 10 feet within the property or site, and 10 feet beyond the property lines at a scale specified by the director. Iso foot-candle contour line style plans may be substituted for the photometric grid.

G. For exterior lighting installations within 50 feet of upper level living units, hori­zontal and vertical projection of photometric data is required.

H. If needed to review proposed exterior lighting installations, the director may require additional information following the initial lighting plan submittal, including but not lim­ited to:

1. Landscaping information that indi­cates mature tree size;

2. Shrubbery and other vegetation in order to evaluate the long-term and seasonal effectiveness of lighting or screening of light­ing. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.050 Lighting standards for uses within 50 feet of residential zones.

The following requirements shall apply:

A. Lighting poles shall be no taller than 15 feet and shall be installed at a maximum of 17 feet above the grade of the area to be lit.

B. Lighting fixtures shall be aimed and shielded in a manner that shall not direct illu­mination on adjacent residential zones. Fix­tures shall be of a type or adequately shielded to prevent glare from normal viewing angles.

C. At the discretion of the director and, where feasible, additional landscaping may be used to provide light screening between com­mercial zones and residential zones to help prevent light trespass. Where landscaping is used for light screening, the director shall take into consideration the applicable landscaping standards, the design standards, the creation of excessive shadows or dark spaces, and views into and out of a site. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.060 Open-air parking lot lighting.

A. Open-air parking lots shall comply with the standards of this chapter in addition to the other requirements of this title.

B. Open-air parking lot lighting shall be designed to provide for uniform lighting throughout the facility with no dark patches or pockets.

C. Open-air parking lot lighting shall be designed to provide sufficient lighting to iden­tify parking features and provide pedestrian safety.

D. In order to direct light downward and minimize the amount of light spilled into the dark night sky, all lighting fixtures serving open-air parking lots, except as allowed in Chapter 19.06 NBMC, Design and Construc­tion Standards for Electrical and Street Light­ing, shall be full cut-off fixtures as defined by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA).

E. If the design of an area suggests the use of parking lot lighting fixtures of a particular “period” or architectural style the director may permit and/or require alternatives or supple­ments to the lighting described above.

F. The following mounting height regula­tions shall apply to open-air parking lot light­ing:

1. The maximum permissible mount­ing height of open-air parking lot lighting within 50 feet of residential zoning districts shall be 17 feet.

2. The maximum permissible mount­ing height of all other outside lighting shall be 27 feet.

G. The table below establishes open-air parking lot lighting standards:

	Basic1
Minimum foot-candles on pavement2	0.2 foot-candles
Maximum foot-candles on pavement	4.0 foot-candles
Minimum foot-candles at five feet above pavement3	0.1 foot-candles

1    During periods of non-use, the illumination of cer­tain parking facilities shall be turned off or reduced to conserve energy. If reduced lighting is to be used only for the purpose of property security, the minimum (low point) value shall not be less than 0.1 foot-candle.

2    Measured on the parking surface, without any shadowing effect from parked vehicles or trees at points of measurement.

3    Measured at five feet above parking surface at the point of the lowest illumination.

(Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.070 Canopy lighting and lighting of service stations.

A. In order to minimize the extent of direct glare, light fixtures mounted on cano­pies shall be recessed so that the lens cover is recessed or flush with the bottom surface (ceil­ing) of the canopy or shielded by the fixture or the edge of the canopy so that light is con­strained to 85 degrees or less from vertical. Figure 1 below, entitled Recessed Fixture, illustrates this.

Figure 1 – Recessed Fixture

B. Lights shall not be mounted on the top or sides of the canopy. The sides shall not be illuminated in any manner.

C. Areas around and under canopies and islands shall be illuminated so that the mini­mum horizontal luminance at grade level is at least one foot-candle and no more than five foot-candles. At the discretion of the director, increased lighting levels may be permitted for enhanced security purposes only. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.080 Lighting of outdoor performance, sport and recreation facilities.

A. Lighting levels and pole heights for outdoor performance, sports, and recreation facilities shall not exceed by more than five percent of the Illuminating Engineering Soci­ety of North America published standards for the proposed activity.

B. Where playing fields or other special activity areas are to be illuminated, lighting fixtures shall be specified, mounted, aimed and shielded so that their beams fall within the primary playing area and immediate surround­ings, and so that no direct illumination is directed off the site.

C. The main lighting shall be turned off as soon as possible following the end of the event. The main lighting shall not remain on longer than 30 minutes following the end of the event. Where feasible, a low level lighting system shall be used to facilitate patrons leav­ing the facility, cleanup, nighttime mainte­nance and other closing activities. The low level lighting system shall provide a horizontal illumination level at grade of no more than four foot-candles. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.090 Architectural accent lighting.

A. Lighting fixtures used to accent archi­tectural features, materials, colors, style of buildings, or art shall be located, aimed and shielded so that light is directed only on those features.

B. Lighting fixtures used to accent archi­tectural features, materials, colors, style of buildings, or art shall not generate excessive light levels, cause glare, or direct light beyond the facade onto neighboring properties, streets or the night sky.

C. The maximum illumination of any ver­tical surface or angular roof surface shall not exceed five foot-candles.

D. Flags of the United States or Washing­ton State may be illuminated from below pro­vided such lighting is focused primarily on the individual flag or flags to limit light trespass and spill into the dark night sky. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).

18.40.100 Lighting of landscaping.

Illumination of landscaping shall utilize diffused or muted lighting, avoid glare, and minimize light trespass beyond landscaping onto neighboring properties, streets, or the night sky. (Ord. 1256 § 1 (part), 2006).