Boulder, CO Holiday Decorations: Holiday Light Rules (2026)

Boulder's Outdoor Lighting Ordinance in BRC 9-9-16 is one of the more carefully drafted in Colorado but it expressly accommodates seasonal holiday displays. The general rule restricts any lamp or bulb visible beyond the property line on which it is located, but the ordinance expressly excludes seasonal displays and landscape ornamental lighting from that restriction. For single detached dwelling units on individual lots, a lighting plan is not required at all when all proposed lighting is provided by fixtures of 900 lumens or less — which covers ordinary residential LED holiday strings comfortably. There is no city-wide take-down date for residential holiday lights. The constraints on a typical residential display are: (1) the noise ordinance in BRC 5-9-6, which prohibits electronically amplified sound that is audible beyond 100 feet of a residential property line between 11 pm and 7 am, or 200 feet during the daytime — this is the enforcement vehicle for light-and-music shows; (2) the unreasonable noise provisions elsewhere in BRC Title 5 Chapter 9 for non-electronically-amplified sound; and (3) the general nuisance provisions which can reach severe light trespass into a neighbor's bedroom. Crowd-attracting displays in single-family neighborhoods can also implicate traffic-control concerns and parking restrictions. HOA-controlled communities such as Heatherwood, Wonderland Hills, and Frasier Meadows commonly impose take-down dates and intensity limits through CC&Rs.