At the last City Council meeting, Mayor Hart said that two key criteria for an outdoor lighting ordinance should be: (1) Neighbors cannot see the light source; and (2) light does not spill beyond your yard, creating light trespass. Bravo. Fortunately, light trespass is easily fixed by using properly shielded fixtures and reasonable illumination levels.
Chuck Gillette, the City’s Public Works Director addressed the first “fix” to light trespass – shielding. He showed the Council a half dozen diagrams showing light trespass and solutions.
Here is one of the diagrams. It shows a floodlight that is shielded so its light is directed downward. However, in this example, the shielding did not prevent light trespass beyond the property line. Chuck’s solution: A solid wall at the property line tall enough to block light onto the neighbor’s property. He had other examples of problems created by and solutions for floodlights, lantern lights, sconces, and soffit lights. (Click here to download)
The Council also discussed the possibility of dividing the city into two or three “zones” with different outdoor lighting standards for homes in each zone. The Transportation Plan does have a “rural” zone, which is mostly Kayenta, that has different street lighting requirements. That division makes sense… for street lighting. But regulating outdoor lighting for homes using multiple zones in the Outdoor Lighting Ordinance is not the same thing. It is not a good idea.
The City Council appears to be considering multiple zones to try and accommodate everyone in Ivins as much as possible. Okay, that’s admirable. There are those of us who want to do what is possible to protect our night sky. And, as Councilmember Jenny Johnson rightfully pointed out, other residents want enough light at night so they do not stumble in the dark and their children and grandchildren can play safely.
Both sets of “wants” are reasonable. So, at least from that standpoint, I understand the appeal to the idea of “zones.” It sounds like a simple, quick way to satisfy both “wants.”
But I do not think the two sets of “wants” are incompatible. I think most of us care about both “wants.” So, I believe one zone can satisfy all our “wants” with a well-written ordinance. I think Chuck went a long way towards that at the meeting with his six diagrams.
Also, although it may sound easy to create two or three zones in Ivins, I do not think it will end up feeling fair to everyone, no matter which of the two “wants” they prefer that I mentioned above. Here is a map showing where more than 1,200 people in Ivins live who signed a letter of support for protecting the night sky earlier this year (the blue dots). Most of the blank areas are simply parts of the city without residential development. I bet if we asked Ivins residents if they support the idea of having enough light at night so they do not trip in the dark and their children can play safely, we would see a similar city-wide distribution.
The two “wants” are not incompatible. They really aren’t. So, it seems wrong to divide us as a community into zones.
It makes more sense to do more research and seek more input to find a way to satisfy both “wants.” Yes, that means more work up front, but I believe it results in a more cohesive and harmonious community. In my view, that result totally justifies the extra work.
The Council continued to discuss the use of bollards in Kayenta. Chuck presented three options, ranging from installing the most bollards to the fewest. Councilmember Sue Gordhammer argued for keeping things as they are right now until traffic counts prove there is a need for some bollard lighting at the fewest number of intersections. The Council appeared to be accepting Sue’s concerns and position.
They will continue the discussion of outdoor lighting, breaking the city up into zones, and review the proposed changes recommended by the Planning Commission at their next meeting on July 1st and I expect there will be a public hearing at the following meeting on July 15th. I do not think they need to hold a public hearing to decide on the use of bollards in Kayenta. If that’s right, they may make their decision at the July 1st meeting.
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Recent “Outdoor Lighting” posts
- Public Hearing On Outdoor Lighting This WeekThe Ivins City Council will hold a public hearing this Thursday, August 19th, to get input from citizens about the proposed changes to the Outdoor Lighting Ordinance. Here is the latest version of the proposed Outdoor Lighting Ordinance. They have been working on this for quite a while and made some positive progress at their…
- I Moved To East Canyons. You Moved TooI used to live in Ivins. Last Thursday I moved to “East Canyons.” Maybe you moved to East Canyons too. If not, then you either moved to “West Cliffs” or “Central Mountain.” That’s right, at the last City Council meeting they approved carving up the city into three zones with different street lighting standards in…
- Don’t Zone OutAt the last City Council meeting, Mayor Hart said that two key criteria for an outdoor lighting ordinance should be: (1) Neighbors cannot see the light source; and (2) light does not spill beyond your yard, creating light trespass. Bravo. Fortunately, light trespass is easily fixed by using properly shielded fixtures and reasonable illumination levels.…
- Changes to the Outdoor Lighting OrdinanceThe Ivins City Council will discuss potential changes to the outdoor lighting ordinance recommended by the Planning Commission on June 17th. This is not a public hearing. That should happen at a future meeting. Some of the proposed changes are simply technical, like adding definitions for Kelvin and photometrics. But others would significantly weaken our…
- Bollards Versus Streetlights in KayentaThe City last updated its specifications for streetlighting in 2019. At that time, the question on how to provide lighting in the “rural area” was undecided. The rural area mostly begins on the west side of 400W and covers all of Kayenta and some other parcels. At the June 3, 2021 City Council meeting, Public…