Westminster, CA Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass (2026)

The City of Westminster does not have a stand-alone light-trespass ordinance setting numeric foot-candle limits at property lines. Instead, glare and light spillover onto neighboring properties are controlled through the Zoning Code's site-planning and general development standards (Title 17, Article 3), which acknowledge that outdoor lighting can have a negative visual or psychological effect—particularly where residential uses abut or are near commercial, office, or industrial areas—and require that exterior lighting be placed, illuminated, and shielded in compliance with the Municipal Code so it does not adversely affect adjacent residential uses. For commercial and multifamily projects, lighting placement and shielding are typically reviewed as conditions of development approval by the Planning Division. Where light from one property unreasonably interferes with a neighbor's use and enjoyment of their property, the City's general nuisance provisions (Municipal Code Chapter 8.20, Nuisances) can provide a code-enforcement avenue. Statewide California Title 24, Part 6 standards (including Section 130.2) further require outdoor lighting controls and shielding on new and altered construction. Because Westminster lacks specific numeric trespass thresholds, complaints about a neighbor's floodlight or security lighting are generally evaluated case-by-case under the site-planning standards (for permitted projects) or as nuisances, rather than against a fixed light-trespass metric. These are city-level standards distinct from any unincorporated Orange County rules.