Concord, NC Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

Article 10.3.1.C, "General Design Standards for Non-Residential and Multi-family Development," applies to any project going through Zoning Clearance or Site Plan review (except developments in the CC district) and states plainly at item 4, Exterior Lighting, that lighting sources must be designed and constructed to direct light away from public rights-of-way and residentially zoned or developed areas. This is a citywide light-trespass standard, not a suggestion: it is enforced through the same review the Administrator conducts for every commercial and multifamily site plan.

Development inside the city's Mixed Use (MX) districts faces an additional, more detailed layer under Article 9.3.14.R, Site Lighting. Every exterior fixture must be arranged to reflect away from adjoining premises and any public right-of-way, and must be shielded to contain all direct rays on the site; the lamp or globe cannot extend below the cutoff shield, and an illuminated canopy's fixtures cannot extend below the canopy ceiling. MX applicants must submit a detailed lighting plan with their final site plan showing fixture types, pole design, location and footcandle spread, and fully shielded fixtures are mandated in parking areas, service and delivery areas, residential areas and for signage. Street lighting in MX residential and retail areas is capped at pedestrian-scale, decorative fixtures no taller than 20 feet, and public street lighting must additionally be approved by the Concord Transportation Department.

Both standards sit inside the same CDO enforcement scheme. Article 1.5.5 lets the Code Enforcement Unit of the Concord Police Department issue a notice of violation for any CDO violation, including a lighting standard, and the Administrator can pursue further remedies. There is no separate 'dark sky' overlay district; the rule is built into the general parking/site-lighting standard plus the MX-specific shielding requirement.