Lawton, OK Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Lawton City Code § 6-1-5-187(A)(3)(b)
- Light trespass cap
- 0.1 foot-candles at property line
- Parking-lot illumination range
- 0.2 to 4.0 foot-candles average
- Uniformity ratio limit
- 4:1 average to minimum
- Full cutoff trigger
- Fixtures over 2,000 initial lumens
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 11-53, § 2 (11-29-2011)
Summary
Lawton City Code Section 6-1-5-187 limits how much light a development's site lighting can throw onto a neighboring residential lot: no more than 0.1 foot-candles measured beyond the property line. The same section caps overall parking-lot illumination and requires full cutoff fixtures for brighter lights.
3.The installed fixture height, spacing, mounting location, illumination levels, as well as the number and type of fixtures shall be reviewed as part of the site plan. The lighting design must meet the following criteria:a.Illumination level: The average maintained illumination level shall be not more than 4.0 foot-candles or less than 0.2 foot-candles, with a maximum uniformity ratio (average to minimum) of 4:1 over the entire parking area.b.Light trespass onto to adjacent residential properties: The illumination level beyond the property line shall not be greater than 0.1 foot-candles.c.Glare control: Full cut-off fixtures (ninety (90) degrees from vertical) shall be required for all light sources greater than two thousand (2,000) initial lumens (approximately the equivalent of a one hundred fifty (150) watt incandescent bulb).
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 2 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Section 6-1-5-187(A)(3) sets three numeric benchmarks the city reviews as part of a project's site plan. 0 foot-candles, with a maximum uniformity ratio of 4:1 between the average and the minimum reading, so a lot cannot be lit unevenly with dark pockets and glaring hot spots. 1 foot-candles, a low threshold meant to keep a commercial or multi-family lighting plan from washing out a neighboring yard at night. Third, glare control requires full cutoff fixtures, meaning no light escapes above ninety degrees from vertical, for any light source rated above 2,000 initial lumens, about the output of a 150-watt incandescent bulb.
All three figures are reviewed together at the site-plan stage alongside fixture height, spacing, and mounting location, and the section frames the whole standard around one stated purpose: providing adequate parking-lot security lighting while protecting adjacent residential properties from that same lighting. 1 foot-candles crossing into a neighboring residential lot does not meet the section as written, regardless of how the interior parking area is lit.
Violations & Fines
A site-lighting plan that fails the 0.1 foot-candle light-trespass cap can be rejected or conditioned at site-plan review before a certificate of occupancy issues. If lighting is installed differently than approved and later measured over 0.1 foot-candles at a residential property line, the project is out of compliance with Section 6-1-5-187. The section sets no separate fine, so enforcement of an as-built violation falls to Section 1-1-119's general penalty: up to a $750 fine, up to sixty days in jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much light can spill onto my yard from a neighboring Lawton development?
What is a foot-candle and why does Lawton's code use it?
Does Lawton require a light-trespass study before approving a project?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lawton
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