Long Beach's Outdoor Lighting: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles outdoor lighting a little differently. In Long Beach, California, there are 3 distinct rules that residents and property owners should be aware of. Some are stricter than what neighboring cities enforce, and others are more relaxed. Here is what you need to know.

Billboard Lighting

Long Beach requires billboard illumination to be designed, aimed, and shielded so light falls only on the display surface under Municipal Code § 21.54.250, preventing light trespass into the night sky or onto neighboring property, with all service wiring run underground and compliance verified before a building permit issues.

Key details: Governing section: LBMC § 21.54.250. Adopting ordinance: ORD-14-0006 (2014). Requirement: Light must fall only on display surface. Wiring: All service wiring installed underground. Verification: Director of Development Services before building permit.

A billboard lit without the required aiming and shielding, or with light trespassing onto neighboring property or the night sky, violates § 21.54.250 and can be held up at the building-permit stage by the Director of Development Services, who must first be satisfied the standard is met. Electronic billboards face an added compliance check under § 21.54.280.B's dusk-to-dawn brightness cap, backed by required factory certification and on-request contractor verification of actual luminance levels.

Dark Sky Rules

In zones established under the City's Title 22 Transitional Zoning Code, corridor and activity-node areas outside the Coastal Zone, Long Beach Municipal Code § 22.30.110.A requires all lighting to meet Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) and International Dark Sky Association (IDA) standards to prevent over-lighting of structures and spaces.

Key details: Governing section: LBMC § 22.30.110.A. Scope: Zones established under Title 22 only. Standard referenced: IES and International Dark Sky Association (IDA). Adopting ordinance: ORD-24-0015 (Oct. 1, 2024). Gap-fill rule: Title 21 applies where Title 22 is silent.

Lighting installed in a Title 22 zone that over-lights structures and spaces in disregard of the IES/IDA standard in § 22.30.110.A is out of compliance with a development standard reviewed as part of site plan and building permit approval for projects in those zones; outside Title 22 zones, § 21.10.080's general zoning penalty provisions apply instead under the Title 22 gap-filling rule in § 22.10.010.

Long Beach is more permissive than most cities when it comes to dark sky rules. That said, there are still limits.

Light Trespass & Shielding

Long Beach requires every parking lot and garage citywide to be lit with fixtures directed and shielded to keep light and glare off adjacent properties under Municipal Code § 21.41.259, which also caps light-standard height against the distance to the nearest property line.

Key details: Governing section: LBMC § 21.41.259. Scope: All parking lots and garages citywide. Height cap: 1 ft height per 2 ft to property line. Standard referenced: Illuminating Engineers Society. Enforcement: Development Services plan review, zoning code enforcement.

A parking lot or garage lit without shielding, so light or glare spills onto a neighboring property, is out of compliance with § 21.41.259 and can be flagged during Development Services' plan review or through standard zoning code enforcement for an as-built violation; oversized light standards that exceed the height-to-distance ratio in the same section are enforced the same way.

The Bottom Line

Long Beach's outdoor lighting rules are a mixed bag. Some areas are strict, others are relaxed, and the details matter. The best approach is to check the specific rule that applies to your situation rather than assuming Long Beach is broadly strict or permissive.

Keep in mind that Long Beach can amend these rules at any council meeting. For the most current version of any rule mentioned here, check the specific ordinance page, where we track updates as they happen.