Bossier Parish, LA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

Section 126-798 of the Bossier Parish zoning code, 'Arrangement of lighting facilities,' governs every outdoor light fixture used to illuminate signs, parking areas or 'other purposes' in the unincorporated parish. The rule is a performance standard, not a fixture spec: it requires the source of light itself, not just the beam, to be concealed from adjacent residential properties and arranged so it does not interfere with traffic. The code does not set a footcandle number or mounting height for this general rule, leaving the Metropolitan Planning Commission and zoning administrator to judge compliance case by case at site plan review.

Section 126-882, 'Heat, glare and vibration,' backs this up with a district-wide performance standard that applies to any use, lit or not: no use may emit objectionable heat, glare or vibration that is perceptible beyond the boundary of the building site on which it sits. Together the two sections mean a parking lot light, a sign floodlight or a security light on a commercial or industrial parcel in unincorporated Bossier Parish must be shielded or aimed so its glow and glare stay on the property, with particular protection for adjoining residential land.

The rules trace to the parish's 1975 Code (§§ 19:543 and 19:581) and remain in force as codified in Chapter 126. A homeowner who finds a neighboring business's lighting spilling onto residential property has a Code basis to file a complaint with the parish zoning administrator rather than relying on nuisance law alone.