Chino Hills, CA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- non-residential projects in design review
- Shielding trigger
- adjacent to residential development
- Wall-pack fixtures
- prohibited
- Exterior building lights
- decorative sconces required
- Review path
- Site Plan or Site Development Permit
- Citation
- CHMC § 16.09.070
Summary
Chino Hills has no dark-sky ordinance, but its non-residential design guidelines require shielded lighting. Municipal Code Section 16.09.070 requires parking lot lighting to be shielded whenever a commercial, business park, or institutional project sits next to residential development, bans wall-pack fixtures on building exteriors, and requires decorative sconces instead.
1.Parking lot lighting poles and fixtures should complement the overall site architecture and design in terms of scale, color, and style.2.Parking lot light shall be shielded when the project is located adjacent to residential development or zone(s).3.Use decorative light sconces for all exterior building lights. Wall Packs are not permitted.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 61).
Full Breakdown
09, the Non-Residential Design Guidelines, imposes a real shielding requirement through its site plan and design review process. 070 sets three lighting standards: parking lot fixtures should complement the site's architecture in scale, color, and style; parking lot lighting must be shielded whenever the project is located adjacent to residential development or a residential zone; and every exterior building light must be a decorative sconce, with wall-pack fixtures barred outright. 78. 060. 070 before approving a non-residential site plan, so a developer proposing unshielded parking-lot lights next to a residential tract, or wall packs on a retail building, gets that plan rejected or conditioned until the fixtures are shielded and decorative.
Violations & Fines
Because Section 16.09.070 is enforced through the discretionary site plan and design review process rather than a standalone citation, non-compliant lighting shows up as a plan-check condition of approval: the Community Development Director can withhold Site Plan or Site Development Permit approval under Chapters 16.76 and 16.78 until the fixtures are shielded and wall packs are replaced with sconces. An applicant who disagrees with a lighting condition may appeal under Section 16.58.060.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Chino Hills have a dark-sky lighting ordinance?
Does the lighting shielding rule apply to my house?
What happens if my project's parking lot lights are not shielded?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Chino Hills
California rules heatmap·Compare Chino Hills to another location·View the California outdoor lighting overview
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