Walker County, GA Outdoor Lighting: Billboard Lighting (2026)
Key Facts
- Shutoff window
- 11:30 p.m. to following sunset
- Applies to
- Off-premises (billboard) signs, Corridor District
- Ordinary business lighting curfew
- 30 min after closing (§22-521(l))
- Reviewing body
- Design Review Board & Planning Commission
- Penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine / 6 months (§1-13)
Summary
Under Walker County Code § 22-521(k), lighted off-premises advertising signs, meaning billboards, in the Chickamauga Battlefield Corridor Overlay District's commercial design guidelines must switch off between 11:30 p.m. and the following sunset, as part of the county's broader exterior-lighting standards for Corridor development along US 27.
(k)Lighted outdoor advertising off-premises signs should be switched off between the hours 11:30 p.m. and the following sunset.
Full Breakdown
Section 22-521 is the Corridor Overlay District's exterior lighting standard for commercial development along US 27 in unincorporated Walker County. Subsection (k) singles out lighted outdoor advertising off-premises signs, requiring them to be switched off between 11:30 p.m. and the following sunset, a longer nightly cutoff than ordinary business lighting gets under subsection (l), which requires site lights to switch off 30 minutes after the business closes. Subsection (o) separately bars searchlights, laser lights, flashing, moving, revolving, flickering, or strobe lights on any Corridor property. Sec. 22-518 further caps freestanding sign height and area along US 27 and requires internally lit signs to use opaque backgrounds so only the lettering shows at night. Compliance is confirmed at Design Review Board and Planning Commission site-plan review before a Corridor building permit is issued; a billboard lighting plan that does not commit to the 11:30 p.m. cutoff is grounds to condition or deny approval.
Violations & Fines
A billboard lighting plan that omits the 11:30 p.m. shutoff can be denied at Design Review Board and Planning Commission review. Operating a lit off-premises sign past 11:30 p.m. after approval is a Code violation, punished under the general penalty in § 1-13: a fine up to $1,000, imprisonment up to six months, or both, with each night of noncompliance a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this billboard curfew apply to all of Walker County?
How is this different from the rule for ordinary business signs?
Who enforces the billboard lighting curfew?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Walker County
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