Roswell, GA Sign Regulations: Holiday Displays (2026)
Key Facts
- Exempt item
- Temporary holiday lighting
- Exempt from
- UDC § 10.4 shielding/lamp-type rules
- Also exempt nearby
- Pool lighting, emergency lighting
- Governing section
- UDC § 10.4.3.B.3
Summary
Temporary holiday lighting is expressly exempt from Roswell's outdoor lighting shielding and lamp-type rules, so seasonal displays skip the permit-triggered fixture standards other exterior lighting must meet.
B. Exempt Lighting. The following luminaires and lighting systems are exempt from these requirements: 1. Lighting for pools used at night; 2. Underwater lighting used for the illumination of swimming pools and fountains; 3. Temporary holiday lighting; 4. Lighting required and regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration, or other federal, state or local agency; 5. Emergency lighting used by police, fire, or medical personnel, or at their direction.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 17 | Unified Development Code: Supplement 5).
Full Breakdown
UDC § 10.4.3.B lists exempt lighting that need not comply with the article's shielding and fixture standards, and item 3 names temporary holiday lighting directly, alongside pool lighting, FAA-required lighting and emergency lighting. The exemption applies within the article that otherwise requires full-cutoff fixtures and property-line foot-candle limits, so a homeowner's seasonal string lights and yard displays are not held to those standards during the holiday season.
Violations & Fines
No standard applies to exempt holiday lighting itself; if a fixture is used or left up outside a genuinely temporary/seasonal display it can fall back under the regular § 10.4 shielding and foot-candle standards enforced through the City's permit and Certificate of Occupancy review.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do holiday lights in Roswell, Georgia need to be shielded?
Does Roswell cap how long holiday lights can stay up?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Roswell
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Holiday Displays in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Fulton County handle holiday displays.