Outdoor Lighting in Elgin, IL (2026)
3 verified outdoor lighting rules for Elgin, Illinois, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Dark Sky Rules
Elgin's outdoor lighting chapter caps brightness by zoning district and forces full-cutoff shielding on brighter fixtures: any luminaire over 1,800 lumens (900 lumens for spot or flood lights) cannot emit light above a horizontal plane through its lowest light-emitting part, and near residential lines or streets those same fixtures must mount no higher than 25 feet under § 19.13.125.
Elgin Outdoor Lighting Glare & Shielding Rule
Some RestrictionsElgin Municipal Code § 19.13.125
Any luminaire with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than one thousand eight hundred (1,800) lumens, and all spot or flood luminaires with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than nine hundred (900) lumens, shall not emit any direct light above a horizontal plane through the lowest direct light emitting part of the luminaire. Any luminaire with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of mo...
Light Trespass & Shielding
Elgin's outdoor lighting code puts a hard number on spillover: light escaping from any community facility, business, or industrial property onto an adjoining residential lot or public street right-of-way cannot exceed one-half horizontal footcandle under § 19.13.130(D), with readings taken at 3.5 feet above grade per § 19.13.135.
Elgin Light Trespass Onto Neighboring Property
Some RestrictionsElgin Municipal Code § 19.13.130(D)
D.The maximum light trespass permitted to spill over onto any residential zoned property or public street right-of-way from any community facility, business, or industrial zoned property shall not exceed one-half (½) horizontal footcandles.
Billboard Lighting
Elgin doesn't regulate billboard lighting because it prohibits billboards outright: § 19.50.110(G) bans "off-premises graphics," the code's term for street graphics commonly called billboards. Any street graphic that is legally on-site, including illuminated ones, must instead follow the general sign-lighting rule in § 19.50.060.
Elgin Bans Off-Premises Billboard Signs
Heavy RestrictionsElgin Municipal Code § 19.50.110(G)
19.50.110. - Prohibited. The following street graphics shall be prohibited in the city: A.Graphics that by color, location, or design resemble or conflict with traffic-control graphics or signals.B.Street graphics attached to light poles or standards.C.Portable street graphics, except for temporary graphics authorized in this chapter...G.Off-premises graphics.
Looking for Kane County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Elgin city rules.
Outdoor Lighting in Kane County →