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

Subsection C(7)(d) of the La Cueva Design Overlay Zone standards works alongside the shielding and downward-focus rules in the same paragraph, but it targets a different problem: light spilling off the lot line onto a neighbor. It requires exterior lighting to be shielded so that emitted light is confined within the boundary of the property where it originated, a stricter standard than merely pointing a fixture down. and sunrise, unless the business is open to the public during those hours, which limits nighttime glare from commercial frontages even after work lighting shuts off.

5) design standards, it applies only to new non-residential development and expansions within the mapped La Cueva Overlay Zone. 9)(D)(4)(d), covering West Placitas, Las Placitas, and Ideal Acres/San Francisco, each require that exterior lighting be shielded in such a manner so that it does not shine onto any adjoining residential properties, a directly neighbor-focused version of the same light-trespass protection.