Doña Ana County, NM Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

Section 350-506, Environmental performance standards, requires that adverse environmental effects from any use stay on the property that generates them. Subsection D targets lighting directly: all on-site lighting of buildings, lawns, and parking areas must be designed so it does not shine or cause glare onto any adjacent property or building, or cause glare onto a public street or a vehicle on it. Subsection D(1) folds in a state-level standard on top of that local design rule, requiring all light standards to comply with the Night Sky Protection Act at NMSA 1978 § 74-12.

The lighting rule sits alongside a broader glare-and-heat standard in § 350-506E, which requires that glare or heat from principal and accessory uses not be detectable at any point off the parcel where the use is located, and requires flickering or intense light sources to be controlled or shielded so they do not create a nuisance across property lines. Subsection B backs both provisions with a general nuisance standard barring any use from creating visual clutter from excessive lighting that amounts to a public nuisance.

Together these sections put the burden on the property owner or developer to design fixtures, shielding, and placement so illumination and glare stay contained on-site, rather than setting a specific foot-candle or lumen ceiling.