Yorba Linda, CA Outdoor Lighting: Light Trespass & Shielding (2026)

Section 18.10.110.B of the zoning code's residential performance standards requires that all light fixtures on residential property, other than public street lamps, be aimed or shielded so that direct illumination is confined to the property boundaries of the source. The section specifically requires particular care to keep direct illumination from spilling onto or across any public or private street or road, or onto adjacent property, and requires fixtures to be designed so that direct views of the light-emitting luminaire from off site are minimized, reducing glare disturbance to neighbors.

For security lighting, the code encourages motion-sensing fixtures and requires that, where installed, they be adjusted per the manufacturer's instructions to turn off once detected motion stops, rather than remaining on continuously. The Community Development Director administers this standard during design review and building permit plan check for new construction, and it is enforced against existing installations, such as a floodlight or landscape fixture aimed across a property line, through the City's general code enforcement process. The lighting standard sits alongside other residential performance standards in the same section covering mechanical equipment noise, signage and landscaping, all aimed at limiting a property's off-site impacts on neighboring residences.

Only three narrow exceptions relax the shielding rule: seasonal holiday lighting between Thanksgiving and January 15, up to 14 additional days a year for other holidays with Director approval, and lighting the Planning Commission separately approves as part of a conditional use permit.