Mesa, AZ Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Evening nit cap
- 300 nits, full white mode
- Evening hours defined
- sunset to 11 p.m.
- Nighttime rule
- dark 11 p.m. to sunrise
- Exception
- amber alerts/emergency messaging only
- Dimming
- automatic photoelectric sensor required
Summary
Electronic billboards in Mesa's Billboard Overlay District can't exceed 300 nits in full white mode during evening hours and must dim automatically with ambient light, while every billboard must go dark from 11 p.m. until sunrise except for emergencies, under Title 11, Chapter 25.
Lighting Controls.1.Electronic Billboards.a.Evening Illumination. Illumination of electronic Billboards must not exceed 300 nits in full white mode in evening hours (from sunset until 11:00 p.m.).b.Automatic Dimming. Electronic message panels must include automatic lighting control technology to dim, control, and vary the intensity of the display based on ambient light conditions (e.g. daytime, nighttime, partial shade, or cloudy conditions) through a photoelectric sensor that detects ambient light levels and automatically adjusts the display intensity to ensure compliance with the maximum nit levels in this Section.2.Nighttime Illumination. All electronic and non-electronic Billboard illumination must be extinguished in nighttime hours (from 11:00 p.m. until sunrise), except for amber alerts and emergency messaging.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 22).
Full Breakdown
Section 11-25-4(G) of Mesa's Billboard Overlay District regulations sets the lighting controls that apply once a billboard is built under Chapter 25. , and must include automatic lighting-control technology, a photoelectric sensor that reads ambient light and dims the display for daytime, nighttime, partial shade or cloudy conditions, so brightness self-adjusts to stay under the nit ceiling rather than relying on a fixed setting. until sunrise, with a single carve-out for amber alerts and emergency messaging. These lighting limits sit alongside the display-content restrictions in Section 11-25-4(F) (no animation, flashing or moving lights, and an eight-second minimum copy-change interval) and the auditory-effects ban in Section 11-25-4(E), all enforced through the Chapter 67 permitting process and the Title 4, Chapter 1 building-permit and maintenance obligations that Section 11-25-5 folds into billboard approvals.
Because the Billboard Overlay only attaches to 50-acre-plus sites along freeways in ID-2, PS or MX zoning, the lighting caps apply exclusively within that overlay district rather than to on-premise signs elsewhere in the city.
Violations & Fines
Running an electronic billboard above 300 nits after sunset, skipping the automatic dimming sensor, or leaving any billboard illuminated past 11:00 p.m. without an amber-alert or emergency exception violates Section 11-25-4(G), enforced through the same maintenance and permit-compliance process as other billboard standards.
Frequently Asked Questions
How bright can an electronic billboard be in Mesa at night?
Does a Mesa billboard need automatic dimming?
Do the lighting limits apply to non-electronic billboards too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Mesa
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