Rochester Hills, MI Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

Section 138-10.200 states the purpose of the city's exterior lighting chapter is to preserve, protect, and enhance the lawful nighttime use and enjoyment of properties by controlling glare and light trespass, minimizing obtrusive light, conserving energy, and preventing degradation of the nighttime visual environment, while still encouraging innovative and decorative lighting designs. Section 138-10.202.A implements that purpose with a shielding mandate: exterior lighting must be fully shielded and directed downward at a 90-degree angle, oblique lenses such as many wall-pack fixtures are prohibited, and every fixture must incorporate full cutoff housings, louvers, glare shields, optics, reflectors, or other measures preventing off-site glare and light pollution; only flat lenses are allowed, with sag or protruding lenses barred outright.

The chapter's broader glare and trespass rules cap light spillover at the property line at 0.1 footcandles where the site abuts a right-of-way or residential use or zoning, rising to 0.3 footcandles next to non-residential uses, and any light-emitting element exceeding 400 lumens must be fully shielded. New outdoor lighting on any building or parcel must meet the shielding and lamp-type standards, and a site plan proposing a 50 percent or greater increase in units, floor area, seating, or parking triggers a requirement to bring all existing site lighting into compliance, not just new fixtures.