Lancaster County has no dark-sky ordinance. Full-cutoff and shielding requirements are set by your city/borough/township. Example: Lititz Borough requires fixtures for roadways, parking, and walkways to meet IESNA fully-shielded criteria — no light emitted above 90 degrees — with a 1,800-lumen household exemption.
Outdoor-lighting standards are part of municipal zoning under the MPC, not county authority. As a representative example, Lititz Borough's zoning ordinance (Section 614) requires task lighting to be fully shielded and caps mounting heights (16 ft for non-cutoff fixtures, 20 ft for full-cutoff). Typical household fixtures under 1,800 lumens are exempt. Your municipality's dark-sky rules will differ — some Lancaster County townships have detailed full-cutoff standards, others have none. Ask your local zoning officer for the lighting section before installing pole lights or floodlights.
Municipal zoning enforcement — the zoning officer may require re-aiming, shielding, or removal of non-compliant fixtures, with district-court fines under the local ordinance.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Lancaster, PA
The City of Lancaster prohibits loud, disturbing, or unnecessary noise across the city, with stricter standards during nighttime quiet hours of 10:00 PM to 7...
Lancaster, PA
Lancaster regulates on-street parking through Chapter 263 of the City Code and the Lancaster Parking Authority. Most downtown blocks are metered or permit-on...
Lancaster, PA
Lancaster's Zoning Code caps residential fences at 4 feet in front yards and 6 feet in side and rear yards, with extra rules in the city's designated Heritag...
Lancaster, PA
Lancaster requires dogs to be leashed and under control of their owner whenever off the owner's property. Chapter 97 of the City Code works in tandem with th...
Lancaster, PA
Pennsylvania Act 43 of 2017 (72 P.S. §9401) legalized consumer-grade (1.4G) fireworks statewide for adults 18+, but Lancaster's dense rowhouse fabric makes d...
Lancaster, PA
Lancaster requires property owners to keep grass and weeds under 10 inches in height on all residential and commercial lots. Chapter 235 (Property Maintenanc...
See how Lancaster's dark sky rules rules stack up against other locations.
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