Subject:
Title
PROJECT TO UPDATE REGULATIONS ON OUTDOOR LIGHTING
Body
PURPOSE:
PRESENT DRAFT TOWN CODE THAT WOULD REGULATE OUTDOOR LIGHTING (NOT IN THE RIGHT-OF-WAY) IN VIENNA AND HEAR TOWN COUNCIL FEEDBACK AND DISCUSSION.
KEY QUESTIONS:
Key questions for the Town Council are:
1. What feedback does the Town Council have on the draft code presented?
2. Provide policy guidance on four specific questions:
a. Clanton & Associates, the consultant that aided Department of Planning and Zoning staff with drafting the outdoor lighting ordinance updates, recommended that any on-premises illuminated signage larger than 100 square feet must be extinguished during nighttime curfew (10:00pm-6:00am). After speaking with the Town Business Liaison Committee (TBLC), staff believe that this requirement should be removed. What is Council’s preference?
b. Should the standards for illuminated signage in the Church Street District and the Church Street Vision Incentive Overlay align with one another?
c. Should electronic message centers be allowed for public, institutional, and community uses? If so, under what circumstances?
d. Does Council wish to strengthen outdoor lighting standards for residential neighborhoods? If so, should they be retroactively applied?
3. What is the next step in the process?
BACKGROUND SUMMARY:
In October 2023, the Town Council adopted a broad update to the Town of Vienna’s regulations for zoning and subdivision, which was accomplished through the project entitled Code Create Vienna and which became effective on January 1, 2024.
During Code Create and in subsequent work sessions in 2024, the Town Council recognized that the adopted regulations for outdoor lighting were broad and general, and requested that staff bring more refined recommendations forward. Town Council and staff also recognized, however, that staff did not have in-house expertise on this topic and the Council authorized staff to hire consultant support. After an RFP process, Clanton...
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