Outdoor Lighting in Citrus County, FL (2026)
3 rules for unincorporated Citrus County, Florida.
Verified from official government sources
Dark Sky Rules
Citrus County's Cardinal Mixed Use (CMU) District, covering non-residential and mixed-use development along the Cardinal Street corridor, requires every exterior fixture to be a dark-sky friendly, full-cutoff or cutoff fixture meeting International Dark Sky Association standards, with lenses that stay above the fixture's opaque housing. Pole heights are capped at 16 feet in pedestrian areas and 35 feet elsewhere absent PUD approval.
Citrus County CMU District Dark-Sky Lighting Rule
Some RestrictionsCitrus County Land Development Code § 3426(A)(9)(d) (Chapter Three, Use Standards, Cardinal Mixed Use District, Ord. 2026-A16, June 22, 2026)
d. Lighting Fixtures. All exterior lighting installations shall use concealed source and approved dark sky friendly fixtures as defined by the International Dark Sky Association (IDA). These shall be full cutoff or cutoff type fixtures in which the lenses do not project below the opaque section of the fixture. Fixture styles shall be consistent throughout the site and selected for their aesthet...
Light Trespass & Shielding
Inside Citrus County's Cardinal Mixed Use (CMU) District along the Cardinal Street corridor, the Land Development Code treats any light that unnecessarily spills onto a neighboring parcel as excessive lighting and flatly bars light trespass beyond the property line. Luminaires cannot glare onto adjacent property or the public right-of-way, and ground-oriented fixtures such as parking-lot and loading-dock lights must meet full-cutoff standards to prevent it.
Citrus County CMU District Light Trespass Ban
Some RestrictionsCitrus County Land Development Code § 3426(A)(9)(e)-(f) (Chapter Three, Use Standards, Cardinal Mixed Use District, Ord. 2026-A16, June 22, 2026)
e. Excessive lighting/illumination. Lighting of facilities and other uses shall be arranged and operated in such a manner as to prevent direct glare or hazardous interference of any kind to residentially used or zoned property, adjoining streets, drives, walkways, and general rights-of-way. Lighting within any parcel that unnecessarily illuminates any other parcel based on the criteria provided...
Billboard Lighting
An electronic or digital billboard face in unincorporated Citrus County cannot exceed 5,000 nits during daylight hours or 500 nits between dusk and dawn, and every such display must carry an ambient-light monitor that automatically dims the board as outside light conditions change, under the Land Development Code's changeable-copy sign standards.
Citrus County Billboard Brightness Cap
Some RestrictionsCitrus County Land Development Code §§ 9240(B)(4)(b) & 9290(C)(2)
b. Maximum brightness levels for electronic or digital display boards shall not exceed 5,000 nits when measured from the billboard's face at its maximum brightness, during daylight hours and 500 nits when measured from the board face at its maximum brightness between dusk and dawn, i.e., the time of day between sunset and sunrise. ... An automatic changeable facing may be allowed, but shall be ...
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