Duluth, MN Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Daytime brightness cap
- 5,000 nits (464 candelas/sq ft)
- Dusk-to-dawn cap
- 500 nits (46 candelas/sq ft)
- Dimmer requirement
- Automatic, tied to sunset/sunrise
- On-premise sign cap
- 1 footcandle at property line
- Governing section
- UDC Section 50-27.7.E
Summary
Duluth regulates billboard illumination separately from ordinary business-sign lighting. Under the Unified Development Chapter, an electronic billboard's brightness is capped at 5,000 nits by day and 500 nits from dusk to dawn, and every electronic billboard must carry an automatic dimmer that steps the light down before sunset and back up after sunrise.
The following illumination standards apply to on-premises signs. Illumination of billboards (off-premises) are regulated separately in Section 50-27.7. Additional illumination requirements for electronic message signs are found in Section 50-27.7. ... The maximum brightness of an electronic billboard is limited to 5,000 nits or 464 candelas per square foot during daylight hours, and 500 nits or 46 candelas per square foot between dusk to dawn. The billboard must have an automatic dimmer control that produces a distinct illumination change from a higher allowed illumination level to a lower allowed level for the time period between one-half hour before sunset and one-half hour after sunrise;
Full Breakdown
7 for the billboard-specific rules. E, the billboard standards, folds electronic billboards into that cross-reference: an electronic billboard's maximum brightness is limited to 5,000 nits (464 candelas per square foot) during daylight hours and drops to 500 nits (46 candelas per square foot) between dusk and dawn. The code does not leave the changeover to the sign owner's judgment: every electronic billboard must have an automatic dimmer control that produces a distinct illumination change from the higher allowed level to the lower allowed level, timed to one-half hour before sunset and one-half hour after sunrise.
That dimmer requirement sits alongside content rules for the same electronic billboards, which cap message duration at a minimum of eight seconds per image and ban scrolling, flashing or moving displays. 4 and capped at one footcandle at the property line, a lower and separately enforced standard that does not apply to billboards. Electronic billboards themselves are limited to the MU-C, MU-B and I-G zoning districts, and an owner can only build one by acquiring exception credits equal to three times the new sign's square footage or by removing nonconforming billboard square footage on the same ratio.
Violations & Fines
An electronic billboard running brighter than the 5,000-nit daytime or 500-nit nighttime cap, or lacking the required automatic dimmer, is a violation of the Unified Development Chapter enforced by the building official under Section 50-39, treated as a public nuisance. The city issues a correction order, and continued noncompliance after the deadline exposes the owner to abatement action, an administrative citation under Chapter 12, or a court action, with each day of the violation counted separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
How bright can an electronic billboard be in Duluth?
Does Duluth treat billboard lighting differently from a store sign's lighting?
When must a billboard's automatic dimmer switch brightness levels?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Duluth
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