Johnston County, NC Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

Rather than a stand-alone lighting ordinance, Johnston County's dark-sky standard sits inside the definitions of its Land Development Code. Section 14-6 defines 'outdoor lighting' as any lighting source designed to illuminate or aesthetically enhance a building, parking area, sign, or storage area, then sets the operative rule: the lighting must be engineered so it is nonglaring on adjacent properties or uses and is 'dark sky,' meaning it is focused so the light does not exceed the building parapet. That definition governs how outdoor fixtures are engineered across every zoning district in unincorporated Johnston County, since the term feeds into site plan review under article V.

The code layers a second, narrower lighting duty on top of it: Section 14-364 directs developments that use outdoor lighting for security to light principal entrances and internal areas sufficiently to protect residents and property, and requires every street within a major subdivision to include a street lighting system for the same safety purpose. A more specific shielding rule appears for one particular district: within the interstate highway interchange district, Section 14-105 requires all outdoor lighting to be shielded so no direct glare from the light source is visible from the interstate highway or its approach streets.

Together, the definitions section sets the baseline dark-sky, non-glare standard countywide, while the subdivision-security and interstate-corridor sections layer additional site-specific lighting duties on top of it.