Kenner, LA Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

The purpose clause opening the Unified Development Code's exterior lighting article states that its regulations are intended to minimize excessive light trespass and contribute to safety and welfare while implementing the City's Comprehensive Plan goals of increased security, sufficient vehicular and pedestrian lighting, improved aesthetics, and the reduction and elimination of glare and light trespass problems. The operative limit follows in the glare-prohibition subsection: light used to illuminate a parking area abutting a residential district must be arranged to reflect away from that residential district, and the maximum permitted illumination at any property line is two foot-candles, with the cone of light required to stay contained on-site and never cross the property line.

The code offers an alternative compliance path by cross-referencing Table XII-1, Outdoor Lighting Intensity Specifications, which sets tighter maximums at property lines adjacent to specific use types, none exceeding 1.5 foot-candles for commercial or light industrial adjacency and 1.0 for office or public uses, with no minimum required at any property line. Because the two-foot-candle cap and the table are offered as alternative ways to demonstrate compliance, a site plan reviewed by the Department of Inspections and Code Enforcement can meet either standard, but in either case the light cannot be measured crossing onto a neighboring lot.