Newport Beach, CA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

070 sets citywide outdoor lighting standards meant to curb glare, light trespass, overlighting, and sky glow. Subsection (A)(1) requires every outdoor lighting fixture to be designed, shielded, aimed, located, and maintained so it shields adjacent properties and does not produce glare onto neighboring lots or roadways, and it specifically requires that parking lot fixtures and building-mounted light fixtures be full cut-off fixtures, meaning no light escapes above the horizontal plane of the fixture. Subsection (A)(2) bans flashing, revolving, or intermittent exterior lighting visible from any property line or street, unless approved as a temporary accessory feature under a special event permit.

The Director of Community Development can require a photometric study as part of a zoning clearance application under subsection (A)(3) if a project could negatively affect surrounding land uses or sensitive habitat areas, and under subsection (A)(4) the Director can order an already-built lighting installation dimmed or otherwise remediated if it turns out to be excessively illuminating the area. Parking lot light standards get an additional rule in subsection (B): they must be kept to the minimum height needed to light the lot and avoid spillover, and the code favors more, shorter fixtures over fewer tall ones to control that spillover.

Outdoor recreation facilities get the strictest treatment: under subsection (D), a sports court or similar facility within a residential zoning district, or within 200 feet of one, cannot be lighted at all without an approved minor site development review.