Fremont, CA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

Fremont's general outdoor lighting rules are use-specific rather than a single citywide dark-sky code. 330(e) requires that all lights be shielded to direct light into the mini-storage area and away from adjacent property, while allowing the fixtures to remain bright enough to discourage criminal activity. 420(c)(2)), and industrial-district uses may not emit heat or direct or sky-reflected glare that is visible or discernible from the property line under the industrial performance standards. Illuminated signs get their own shielding rule requiring light sources to be concealed or shielded to prevent spillover, glare or momentary blindness to people within view, with signs next to residential areas required to shield light downward and away and be controlled by a rheostat.

There is no single dark-sky ordinance covering every outdoor light fixture citywide; property owners outside these specific use categories are not subject to a shielding mandate under this title, though a project's design review conditions can still impose lighting shielding as a condition of approval on a case-by-case basis.