Royal Oak Township, MI Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

Section 32-628 of the Royal Oak Charter Township Code is the lighting standard in the township's zoning chapter. Subsection (a) requires all parking areas, walkways, driveways, building entryways, off-street parking and loading areas, and building complexes with common areas to be sufficiently illuminated to ensure the security of property and the safety of persons, and then limits how that light can reach the neighbors. Under (a)(1), only nonglare, color-corrected lighting is permitted. Lighting must be placed and shielded so as to direct the light onto the site and away from all adjoining properties, the lighting source cannot be directly visible from adjoining properties, and fixtures must be shielded so they do not cause glare for motorists.

The code pairs the trespass limit with numbers. In parking areas the light intensity must average a minimum of 1.0 footcandle, measured five feet above the surface, and in pedestrian areas a minimum of 2.0 footcandles, measured five feet above surface. Fixtures cannot exceed 25 feet, measured from the ground level to the centerline of the light source, except for public street lighting. The planning commission can modify the height standards in commercial and industrial districts after weighing the position and height of buildings, structures and trees, the potential off-site impact of the lighting, the character of the proposed use, and the character of surrounding land use. Under subsection (b), the lighting cannot exceed the maximum building height in its district.

Paper review comes first. Subsection (b)(2) requires all lighting, including ornamental lighting, to be shown on site plans in enough detail to determine its effects on adjacent properties, traffic safety, and overhead sky glow, and states the objective as minimizing undesirable off-site effects. The site plan approval standards in § 32-80 repeat the point: exterior lighting must be designed so that it is deflected away from adjoining properties, visual glare is minimized, and it does not impede the vision of drivers along adjacent streets.