Olmsted County, MN Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Public road intensity limit
- 1.0 foot-candle at pavement edge
- Adjacent property limit
- 0.5 foot-candle at lot line
- Pole height cap (commercial/industrial)
- 25 feet
- Setback from right-of-way
- 10 feet
- Billboard-specific lighting rule
- none; general Sec. 10.16 applies
- Measurement method
- meter 6 in. above ground, on/off comparison
Summary
Olmsted County has no lighting rule written specifically for billboards, but its general exterior lighting standard applies to any light source in any district, including one mounted on an advertising sign. Light hitting a public road cannot exceed one foot-candle, and light spilling onto adjacent property is capped at half a foot-candle at the property line.
C. Intensity. No light source combination thereof which cast light on a public road shall exceed one (1) foot candle meter reading as measured from the edge of said street pavement or roadway surface nor shall any light source or combination thereof which cast light on adjacent property exceed five-tenths (0.5) foot candles as measured at the property line. D. Method of Measuring Light Intensity. The foot candle level of a light source shall be taken after dark with the light meter held six (6) inches above the ground with the meter facing the light source... If the landowner or land occupier refuses to turn the light source off in order to permit this measurement to occur, the owner/occupant of the site will be cited for exceeding the light intensity standard.
Full Breakdown
16 sets the county's exterior lighting standard for all uses in all districts unless another part of Chapter 1400 states otherwise, and its exceptions list, temporary holiday lighting, government airport or security lighting, emergency lighting, and public park ball-field lighting, does not exempt illuminated signs or billboards. 16 by default. C, no light source or combination of sources casting light onto a public road may exceed a one-foot-candle reading measured at the edge of the pavement, and light spilling onto adjacent property cannot exceed five-tenths of a foot-candle at the property line.
D. 2 requires a cutoff luminaire directing light at 90 degrees or less, caps pole-mounted fixtures at 25 feet in height (or the building's height if roof- or wall-mounted), and requires at least a 10-foot setback from a road right-of-way and 5 feet from a side or rear lot line.
Violations & Fines
A light source, including one illuminating an advertising sign, that exceeds one foot-candle at a public road edge or five-tenths of a foot-candle at an adjoining property line violates Section 10.16.C, and refusing to allow the light to be switched off for a compliance measurement is a separate citable violation under Section 10.16.D. Non-cutoff fixtures or ones exceeding the 25-foot pole height on commercial or industrial property violate Section 10.16.E.2.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Olmsted County have a rule for how bright a billboard can be lit?
How much light can spill onto a neighboring property from a sign or fixture?
How tall can a light pole be on commercial property?
What happens if an inspector wants to measure my lighting?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Olmsted County
Compare Olmsted County to another location·View the Minnesota outdoor lighting overview
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