Kankakee County, IL Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Kankakee County Code § 121-398(2)
- Light-trespass rule
- Reflected light rays may not beam onto homes
- Also barred
- Beaming light into a residence district or street
- Billboard setback from housing
- 100 feet from a viewable residence district
- Enforcement
- Planning director, 10-day notice before removal
Summary
Kankakee County bars illuminated signs, including advertising billboards in commercial districts, from beaming light onto neighboring homes. Code § 121-398(2) requires that where a sign is lit by reflected light, the rays cannot beam directly onto any residential building, nor into a residence district or street.
... Where a sign is illuminated by light reflected upon it, light rays shall not beam directly upon any part of any residential buildings, nor into a residence district or street.
Full Breakdown
Kankakee County Code § 121-398(2) is the outdoor-lighting rule for every sign in a commercial zoning district in the unincorporated county, including the advertising signs (billboards) permitted there under § 121-398(4). ' That means a floodlit or externally lit billboard has to be aimed so its beam stays off nearby houses and off residential zoning entirely, not just dimmed or shielded on the surface facing homes. The rule works alongside the section's separate ban on sign displays with moving parts and its restriction on red, green or amber flashing near traffic signals, so a lit advertising sign in a commercial district has to clear all three tests: no beam onto residential land, no moving parts, and no confusable flashing near a signal.
Advertising signs themselves already carry a distance buffer from housing: § 121-398(4)d requires any billboard viewable from a residence district to sit at least 100 feet from that district's nearest boundary line, on top of the 40-foot setback from the road and from rear or side lot lines. The planning director enforces sign standards countywide and can order a noncompliant sign's lighting corrected or the sign removed under § 121-395(i) if the owner fails to act within ten days of written notice.
Violations & Fines
Aiming a billboard's floodlights or reflected light so the beam falls on a residential building or drifts into a residence district or street violates § 121-398(2), regardless of the sign's distance setback. The planning director issues written notice for a noncompliant sign, and if it is not corrected within ten days, the county may order it altered or removed at the owner's expense under § 121-395(i).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a lit billboard shine its floodlights toward nearby houses in unincorporated Kankakee County?
How far must an advertising sign be from a residential neighborhood?
Who handles a complaint about a billboard's lighting spilling onto a home?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kankakee County
Compare Kankakee County to another location·View the Illinois outdoor lighting overview
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