Outdoor Lighting in Stearns County, MN (2026)

2 rules for unincorporated Stearns County, Minnesota.

Verified from official government sources

Note: These county rules apply to unincorporated areas of Stearns County. If you live within an incorporated city, that city's own rules apply: see the city list below.

Dark Sky Rules

Stearns County's zoning ordinance requires that lighting for off-street parking areas, signs and other structures be hooded or otherwise controlled at the source. Section 7.15 applies countywide in every zoning district and targets glare from floodlights and high-temperature processes like welding as well as ordinary parking-lot fixtures.

Stearns County Requires Shielded Outdoor Lighting

Some Restrictions

Stearns County Ordinance No. 439, Sec. 7.15

In all districts, any lighting used to illuminate an off-street parking area, sign or other structure shall be installed so as to deflect light away from any adjoining property or from public streets. Direct or sky-reflected glare, whether from floodlights or from high temperature processes such as combustion or welding, shall not be directed onto any adjoining property. The source of lights sh...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Billboard Lighting

Stearns County's zoning ordinance limits how billboards and other signs can be lit. Flashing, rotating-beam illumination is banned outright, flood lights must aim directly at the sign face, and no light from a sign may spill onto a public street, a residential structure, or beyond the lot line. The Environmental Services Department enforces the standard countywide outside incorporated cities.

Stearns County Billboard and Sign Lighting Rules

Some Restrictions

Stearns County Ordinance No. 439 (Land Use and Zoning), Sec. 7.25.2(B), (J); Sec. 12.8

B. Illuminated signs may be permitted, but devices giving off an intermittent or rotating beam of light shall be prohibited. Flood lighting shall be focused upon the sign. No lighting for signs shall directly reflect light beams onto any public street or residential structure. Signs shall not be illuminated beyond any lot line. ... J. A Construction Site Permit pursuant to Section 4.11 of this ...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

All Stearns County ordinances

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