Jackson, MS Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

7-B of the Jackson, Mississippi Zoning Ordinance, part of the Corridor 80 (C80) District's General Design Guidelines along the Highway 80 corridor, sets the city's most explicit outdoor-lighting shielding standard. It requires that all lighting used to illuminate an off-street parking area, sign or other structure be arranged to deflect light away from any adjoining residential property through fixture type and location. Canopy-mounted fixtures, such as those over gas station pump islands, must be recessed so the visible light source sits no lower than the underside of the canopy, eliminating a direct downward glare source.

Freestanding light standards are capped at 45 feet unless the City grants a specific height exception during site plan approval. For building-mounted fixtures, the ordinance narrows the choices to low-level incandescent spotlights, floodlights, and similar illuminating devices hooded so the direct beam will not glare upon adjacent property or public streets, the closest the code comes to a cutoff or full-shielding mandate. The City Planning Division's Site Plan Review Committee reviews lighting plans under this section as part of every commercial or multi-family development application in the C80 corridor.

The rule carves out exceptions for sports and athletic field lighting, flagpole lighting, public street lighting, seasonal or holiday displays, and public-safety lighting. 6-B for the C80 Industrial subdistrict. 5, directing developers to use cut-off lenses or hoods to prevent glare and light spill off the project site. Neither provision applies citywide; each is tied to its named overlay or corridor district, so property outside those boundaries is not bound by this shielding language.