[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Northport 7-7-1992 by L.L. No. 9-1992 (Ch. 41 of the 1966 Code); amended in its entirety 11-6-2006 by L.L. No. 10-2006[1]. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Eidtor's Note: This local law also provided that all nonresidential exterior lighting now in existence which conformed to ordinances and laws in effect at the time of their erection or installation and which does not conform to the antiglare provisions of the newly amended chapter, expressed in § 191-4 and 191-6, concerning the lighting of signs, shall be brought into conformity hereto upon any change of use of the subject property, but no later than five years from the effective date of this local law regardless of whether there has been a change of use, unless a waiver or extension has been granted by the Planning Board pursuant to the conditions specified under § 219-19.
A. 
The Village Board of the Village of Northport hereby finds and declares it to be in the public interest to regulate certain exterior lighting within the Village so as to prohibit the maintenance of certain types of illumination that would constitute a nuisance to the quiet enjoyment of properties within the Village.
B. 
The Village Board further finds that the prohibition of maintenance of certain types of exterior lighting is necessary in order to promote the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the Village of Northport in that the maintenance of lighting otherwise prohibited hereby would constitute a danger or nuisance by creating problems of excessive glare, light trespass, and increased energy use.
A. 
This chapter is intended to:
(1) 
Avoid and/or mitigate problems created by improperly designed and installed outdoor lighting;
(2) 
Maximize the effectiveness of site lighting;
(3) 
Avoid unnecessary upward illumination and illumination of adjacent properties; and
(4) 
Reduce glare.
B. 
The provisions of this chapter are intended to regulate residential, commercial, and institutional outdoor lighting in the Village of Northport, and do not apply to temporary emergency lighting, or hazard warning luminaires, needed by the Police or Fire Departments or other emergency services.
For the purposes of this chapter, terms used shall be defined as follows:
BOLLARD LIGHT
A short vertical post used in landscaping that contains a lighting fixture.
DIRECT LIGHT
Light emitted directly from the lamp, off of the reflector or reflector diffuser, or through the refractor or lens, of a luminaire.
DISABILITY GLARE
The eye's line-of-sight contact with a direct light source, which causes a momentary blindness.
FIXTURE
The assembly that houses the lamp or lamps and can include all or some of the following parts: a housing, a mounting bracket or pole socket, a lamp holder, a ballast, a reflector or mirror, and/or a refractor or lens.
FLOODLIGHT OR SPOTLIGHT
Any light fixture or lamp that incorporates a reflector or a refractor to concentrate the light output into a directed beam in a particular direction.
FULLY-SHIELDED LIGHTS OF FULL CUT-OFF TYPE FIXTURE
Outdoor light fixtures shielded or constructed so that no light rays are emitted by the installed fixture at angles above a ninety-degree, horizontal plane from the base of the fixture as certified by a photometric test report. Full cutoff fixtures must be installed in a horizontal position as designed, or the purpose of the design is defeated.
GLARE
Light emitting from a luminaire with an intensity great enough to reduce a viewer's ability to see, and in extreme cases causing momentary blindness.
HEIGHT OF LUMINAIRE
The vertical distance from the ground directly below the centerline of the luminaire to the highest direct-light-emitting part of the luminaire.
LAMP
The component of a luminaire that produces the actual light.
LIGHT TRESPASS
The shining of light produced by a luminaire beyond the boundaries of the property on which it is located.
LUMEN
A unit of luminous flux. One footcandle is one lumen per square foot. For the purposes of this chapter, the lumen-output values shall be the initial lumen output ratings of a lamp.
LUMINAIRE
A complete lighting system, comprised of a lamp or lamps and a fixture.
UNIFORMITY RATIO
The uniformity of light levels across an area, expressed as a ratio of average to minimum level of illumination for a given area.
A. 
All exterior lights and illuminated signs shall be designed, located, installed and directed in such a manner as to prevent objectionable light and glare at and/or across the property lines, and disability glare at any location on or off the property.
B. 
If any light source is positioned so that it directs light toward residential uses, or to create glare perceptible to persons operating motor vehicles on public ways, the luminaire shall be redirected or its light output controlled as necessary to eliminate such conditions.
C. 
Any luminaire with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than 1,800 lumens, and all floodlight or spotlights with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than 900 lumens, shall be hooded or arranged so as not to emit any direct light above a ninety-degree horizontal plane through the lowest direct-light-emitting part of the luminaire.
A. 
Exterior site lighting shall be designed to provide a uniform distribution of light.
B. 
No direct light source from nonresidential uses shall be visible at the property line of residential uses at ground level or above.
C. 
The design of outdoor lighting shall be coordinated with building design and landscape plans. The style of lighting fixtures and poles shall be compatible with the scale and general architectural style of the buildings on the site and the surrounding area.
D. 
The height of lighting fixtures shall be consistent with the planned scale of development.
(1) 
Building-mounted lighting shall not exceed the height of the eaves on a single-story building or the level of the second floor on a multistory building.
(2) 
Along pedestrian walkways, light fixtures shall be mounted at a height of no more than 12 feet; low-level bollards not exceeding 42 inches in height may be used as an alternative.
(3) 
The height of luminaires in parking areas shall not exceed 16 feet.
E. 
Lighting shall be limited in its hours of operation, as determined by the Planning Board.
A. 
Where signs are illuminated, the type of lighting used shall be the same for all signs on a building and all buildings on the same site to provide for consistency in visual character.
B. 
All sign lighting shall be directed at the sign face to avoid the creation of glare directed towards the sky and shall be appropriately shielded so that the lamp is not visible to passing motorists or pedestrians.
C. 
The amount of light reflected off a sign, measured one foot perpendicular from its surface, shall not exceed 50 footcandles at its brightest area when measured with a standard light meter, as per § 243-3A(9).
D. 
For the illumination of signs, the sign face shall be provided with an average-to-minimum uniformity ratio of no more than 2:1.
A. 
Lighting fixtures in parking lots shall be distributed to maintain a uniform distribution of light. Within parking areas, an average maintained illumination level of 0.5 to 1.0 footcandle maximum shall be provided, with an average-to-minimum uniformity ratio of no more than 4:1.
B. 
Light poles shall be located within landscaped islands for safety and aesthetic reasons, but shall not interfere with vegetation.
The following types of lighting shall be prohibited except when used on a temporary basis in connection with a special event. In such instances, they shall be treated as a temporary sign, requiring a temporary sign permit from the Architectural and Historic Review Board.
A. 
Laser source light or any similar high intensity light for outdoor advertising or entertainment.
B. 
Searchlights such as those used for advertising purposes.
Should any outdoor light fixture or the type of light source therein be changed after a building or sign permit has been issued, a change request must be submitted, together with adequate information to assure compliance with this code, which must be received prior to substitution.
Lighting that does not conform to the antiglare provisions of this chapter, expressed in § 191-4 and § 191-6, concerning the lighting of signs, shall be brought into conformity when a change of use occurs, but no later than five years from the effective date.
A. 
It shall be a civil infraction to violate any of the provisions of this Code. Each and every day during which the violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.
B. 
Violations of the provisions of this chapter on residential property shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $250 and/or to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 15 days, in the discretion of the court.
C. 
Violations of the provisions of this chapter on nonresidential property shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 and/or to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 15 days, in the discretion of the court.