Bartow County, GA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Fixture type required
- Full cut-off only
- Max pole height
- 25 feet
- Pole setback from property line
- 10 feet minimum
- Max illumination at property line
- 0.5 foot-candles
- Scope
- Data centers only, not county-wide
- Review step
- Photometric plan may be required
Summary
Bartow County has no general outdoor lighting ordinance for unincorporated homes and businesses, but its Zoning Ordinance imposes a specific dark-sky standard on data centers. Exterior fixtures at a data center site must be shielded, downcast and full cut-off, with poles capped at 25 feet and light spilling no more than 0.5 foot-candles past the property line.
12.Exterior illumination shall be shielded, downcast, and of a luminosity designed to maintain the existing night sky darkness and to prevent light trespass onto adjacent properties. In order to obtain that objective, the following criteria shall be met:a.All fixtures shall be full cut-off type fixtures;b.Light poles shall be no taller than 25 feet in height;c.All light poles must be setback a minimum of 10 feet from any exterior property line; andd.Maximum foot-candles at the property line shall be 0.5. The zoning administrator may require a photometric lighting plan which shows conformity with these requirements as part of any building permit application.
Full Breakdown
2, paragraph 12 of the county's "data center" development standards, requires that all exterior illumination at a data center be shielded, downcast, and of a luminosity designed to maintain the existing night sky darkness and to prevent light trespass onto adjacent properties. To meet that objective, every fixture on a data center site must be a full cut-off type, meaning no light escapes above the horizontal plane of the fixture. Light poles cannot exceed 25 feet in height, and every pole must sit back at least 10 feet from any exterior property line.
5 foot-candles. Community Development, through the Zoning Administrator, may require an applicant to submit a photometric lighting plan demonstrating conformity with all four criteria before a building permit is issued, so the standard is checked at the plan-review stage rather than only after a complaint. This is a use-specific standard tied to the data center definition in Article III of the Zoning Ordinance, not a county-wide dark-sky or lighting code; residential subdivisions, general commercial centers and other uses are not held to the same shielding, pole-height or foot-candle limits unless a separate district standard or development condition imposes them. 2(12).
Violations & Fines
Failure to meet the lighting standard is enforced the same as any other Zoning Ordinance violation: the Zoning Administrator or code enforcement can cite the operator in magistrate court, or the county can seek civil fines and injunctive relief in superior court under § 13.2. Because the standard sits outside Article VI, the mandatory fine is $300 for a first violation, $500 for a second, and $1,000 for a third or later violation, with each day of noncompliant lighting counted separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Bartow County have a dark-sky ordinance for all outdoor lighting?
What fixtures satisfy the data center lighting standard?
Who checks a data center's lighting plan before construction?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bartow County
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