Vista, CA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)

260 states its purpose is to restrict lighting that generates excessive glare and is detrimental to the night sky, while still prioritizing security lighting. "Light pollution" is defined as illumination of the night sky that generates negative impacts on astronomical research, and "shielding" means construction that projects light below an imaginary horizontal plane through the lowest point of the fixture's light source. The standards apply to private lighting installed after the ordinance's effective date, but exempt lighting owned by government agencies, school and special districts, and SDG&E street lights, plus detention-facility lights, law-enforcement operations, kerosene or gas lamps, luminous tube lighting, and Christmas lights from the day after Thanksgiving through January 10th.

Commercial and industrial work-area lighting must be shielded and timer-controlled; security, walkway, roadway, and parking-lot lighting must use shielded low pressure sodium fixtures or an equivalent approved by the City Engineer; and lighting for on-premises signs or architectural/decorative effects must be fully shielded, timer-controlled, and aimed toward the ground. Site development or plot plan applications for multifamily, commercial, or industrial projects must submit fixture location, manufacturer cut sheets, lamp type, timing controls, and wattage. 0 foot-candle at an adjacent commercial or industrial property line. 150.