Trenton, NJ Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

A, showing pole and fixture locations, luminaire specifications, mounting heights and, where the lot abuts a residential district, photometric footcandle plans at the lot lines. B set the numeric limits: one footcandle maximum at any lot line, full cutoff or semi-cutoff luminaire design citywide, a 5-foot setback from residential lot lines for tall nonresidential fixtures, and total pole heights of 20 feet in nonresidential districts and 15 feet in residential districts. Every outdoor luminaire must be shielded so no glare crosses onto adjacent lots or the public right-of-way.

Projects that file a lighting plan also face a color-temperature cap: public lighting sources must sit at or below 3200 Kelvin correlated color temperature, except on outdoor recreation fields, and fixtures must carry an ENERGY STAR, Design Lights Consortium, Consortium for Energy Efficiency or FTC Lighting Facts efficiency certification. C(3) is still allowed. Security lighting on a motion vacancy sensor must extinguish within 15 minutes after the area clears. Outdoor recreational fields get a separate track: luminaires up to 65 feet without a conditional use approval, light aimed onto the field, and field lighting must go dark one hour after an event ends, though parking-area lighting on the same site is not on that clock.