Pontiac, MI Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)

Pontiac's zoning ordinance treats billboard lighting as part of the general billboard standards in § 5.105.G, which apply only in the M-1 and M-2 industrial districts where billboards are permitted at all under § 5.105.G.1. Section 5.105.G.3.c doubles the residential setback for a lit sign: an unilluminated billboard must clear 200 feet from a residential zone or existing residence, but an illuminated one must clear 300 feet. Section 5.105.G.9 then sets the illumination standard itself. External lighting is the only illumination allowed on a standard billboard, and it must be concentrated on the sign face and positioned to avoid glare or reflection onto an adjacent street or highway, the path of oncoming vehicles, or adjacent premises.

Internal illumination is flatly prohibited on any billboard that has not gone through the City's electronic-billboard conversion process. The same subsection bars flashing or intermittent lights, rotating or oscillating lights, moving animated display panels, and video or LED screens showing images or scrolling text, on the ground that such effects can distract drivers and endanger public safety. Every billboard also needs Planning Commission site plan approval under Article 6, Chapter 2 before it goes up, which is where the lighting plan is reviewed alongside the spacing and height standards elsewhere in § 5.105.G.