Sedona, AZ Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

8 of the Sedona Land Development Code states its purpose is to permit reasonable exterior lighting for nighttime safety and security 'while minimizing light pollution and the adverse impact of exterior lighting on stargazing, wildlife habitat, and human health,' language tied directly to the city's designation as an International Dark-Sky Community. The code sorts fixtures into three classes: Class 1 (high-activity areas such as outdoor sales, dining and recreation), Class 2 (security and public-safety lighting for walkways, parking lots and equipment yards) and Class 3 (decorative and accent lighting), and a fixture serving more than one purpose must meet the standards of whichever class is most restrictive.

D(2)c, and even an approved partially shielded fixture is capped at 3,850 initial lumens per net acre and may not exceed 1,400 initial lumens per lamp. The code flatly bans mercury vapor light bulbs and fixtures, lamps exceeding a 4,000 Kelvin correlated color temperature, searchlights, laser source lights, strobe or flashing lights, illusion lights and any unshielded light. A lighting plan must be submitted to the Director before new lighting is installed, and the Planning and Zoning Commission may review it at the Director's discretion.

Fixtures that predate the current standards are not exempt indefinitely: all nonconforming lighting citywide must be brought into compliance by January 1, 2028, and until then no nonconforming fixture may be modified or replaced except with an identical lamp. Limited exemptions exist for emergency lighting, FAA- or FCC-required lighting, underwater pool and fountain lighting, and seasonal holiday lighting between Thanksgiving and January 15 that does not glare onto traffic or trespass onto neighboring properties.