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HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD-2003-004 Amend Article 6 to establish Outdoor Lighting Standard6) R Z - ?40,3 - 0©,4/ 1 001 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS and PLANNING BOARD PUBLIC HEARING AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: February 24, 2003 Action Agenda Item No. C.1.a SUBJECT: Outdoor Lighting Standards Zoning Ordinance Amendment DEPARTMENT: Planning and Inspections PUBLIC HEARING: (YIN) Yes ATTACHMENT(S): Proposed Ordinance INFORMATION CONTACT: Craig Benedict, Director, ext. 2592 Robert P Davis, Planner III, ext. 2580 Carla Thames, Planner I, ext. 2603 TELEPHONE NUMBERS: Hillsborough 732 -8181 Chapel Hill 968 -4501 Durham 688 -7331 Mebane 336- 227 -2031 PURPOSE: To receive public comment on the proposed Outdoor Lighting Standards in the Zoning Ordinance BACKGROUND: Presently, the Orange County Zoning Ordinance does not have any outdoor lighting standards for new or existing development. Generally, the lighting information that the County reviews has been submitted as part of the site plan approval, limiting oversight to those projects requesting a construction authorization. As development and population numbers increase in the County an effective lighting standards ordinance that reflects community values can be an important component in helping to maintain a high quality of life. On occasion, the Planning Department receives complaints that specific lights exceed the brightness necessary to accomplish a particular task. Without clear standards, enforcement action is limited. In these cases, persuasion is the chief enforcement tool and generally has a low rate of success. More recently, there have been concerns about the general loss of darkness during the nighttime hours. `Light Pollution', the common term for sky glow, adversely affects astronomical observations of stars and also reduces nocturnal activities of various nighttime species. Without effective regulations, the detrimental aspect of wasteful, intrusive lights will continue to reduce darkness at night. G: currentplanning /calla /outdoorlighbngstandards /abstract 002 2 Another often - overlooked economic benefit of having outdoor lighting standards is the energy efficiency savings realized. Many of the most commonly used lights are expensive to install initially, plus have higher operating costs ongoing. Outdoor lighting standards that promote the use of efficient, yet adequate lighting can result in substantial cost savings for the private sector, while simultaneously promoting energy conservation. Finally, properly installed and maintained lighting acts as a deterrent to crime and will result in increased security for residents, businesses and visitors in Orange County. Development Process, Schedule and Action Public Hearing on February 24, 2003. RECOMMENDATION(S): Planning Staff recommends APPROVAL of the proposed Amendment. Administration recommends referring the proposed amendment to the Planning Board for a recommendation to be returned to the Board of County Commissioners no sooner May 20, 2003. G: currentplanning /carla /outdoorlightingstandards /abstract 003 An Ordinance Amending the Zoning Ordinance Of Orange County Be if ordained by the Board of Commissioners of Orange County that the Orange County Zoning Ordinance is hereby amended as follows: Section 1. ZONING ORDINANCE. Amend Table of Contents, Article VI to add new provisions entitled "Outdoor Lighting Standards" and to identify it as Section 6.31 with corresponding subheadings and nomenclature as specified in this Ordinance amending the Zoning Ordinance of Orange County. Section 2. ZONING ORDINANCE. Amend Article 6 by adding a new requirement to read as follows: 6.31 Outdoor Lighting Standards 6.31.1 Purpose and Intent A. Outdoor lighting is provided for a variety of purposes to the benefit of modern society. For work or recreation, it enables people to see essential detail in order that they may undertake their activities at night. It facilitates the safety or security of persons or property, for example through lighting on roads and pathways. It may be used to emphasize features of architectural or historical significance, and to light parks and gardens. It is used for advertising or display to promote products or services, or to call attention to commercial premises by means of area lighting or signs. B. it is the intent of this ordinance to preserve, protect, and enhance the lawful nighttime use and enjoyment of any and all property through the use of appropriate lighting practices and systems. Such individual fixtures and lighting systems are designed, constructed, and installed to maintain safety, security and productivity, and curtail the degradation of the nighttime visual environment. 6.31.2 Definitions Cutoff Fixture: An outdoor lighting fixture shielded or constructed in such a manner that no more than two and one half (2 '/2) percent of the total light emitted by the fixture is projected above the horizontal plane of the fixture. 004 4 Direct Light: Light emitted directly from the lamp, off of the reflector diffuser, or through the refractor or diffuser lens, of a luminaire. 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. Flood Lamp: A form of lighting designed to direct its output in a specific direction with a reflector formed from the glass envelope of the lamp itself. Such lamps are so designated by the manufacturers and are typically used in residential outdoor area lighting. Floodlight: A form of lighting designated to direct its output in a diffuse, more or less specific direction, with reflecting or refracting elements located external to the lamp. Footcandle: (fc) The illuminance measured one (1) foot from a one (1) candela source. Full Cutoff Fixture: An outdoor lighting fixture shielded or constructed in such a manner that it emits no light above the horizontal plane of the fixture. Fully Shielded: Outdoor light fixtures shielded or constructed so that no light rays are emitted by the installed fixture at angles above the horizontal plane as certified by a photometric test report. 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. IESNA: The Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, a non - profit professional organization of lighting specialists that has established recommended design standards for various lighting applications. 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 Ordinance, the lumen- output values shall be the INITIAL lumen output ratings of a lamp. Luminaire: A complete lighting system that includes a lamp or lamps and a fixture. Semi -Cutoff Fixture: An outdoor fixture shielded or constructed in such a manner that it emits no more than five (5) percent of its light above the horizontal plane of the fixture, and no more than twenty (20) percent of its light ten (10) degrees below the horizontal plane of the fixture. 6.31.3 Applicability A. All nonresidential outdoor lighting fixtures installed on private or public property shall apply except as stated in Section 6.31.4. B. All outdoor lighting fixtures existing and legally installed and operative before the effective date of this ordinance are exempt from these requirements. When existing lighting fixtures become inoperable, their replacements are subject to all the provisions of the Outdoor Lighting Standards. C. Compliance with this Section shall be administered by the Orange County Planning Department. D. In the event of a conflict with any other section of this article, the more stringent requirement shall apply. 6.31.4 Exemptions The following are exempt from the provisions of the Outdoor Lighting Standards: A. Any lighting used for single family residential or bona fide agricultural purposes. B. Traffic control signals and devices. C. Streetlights installed prior to the effective date of the adoption of this provision. D. Temporary emergency lighting (i.e. fire, police, repair workers, etc.). E. Moving vehicle lights. 000 6.31.5 6.31.6 F. Navigation lights (i.e. airports, heliports, radio /television towers, etc.). G. Seasonal decorations with individual lights in place no longer than 60 days. H. Security lights of any wattag e motion - sensor switch, do not minutes after activation, and (2200 lumens). Submittal Requirements that are controlled by a remain on longer than 12 do not exceed 150 watts A lighting plan shall be submitted with site plan or preliminary plan approval documents. The plan shall contain the following information: A. Plans showing the location, type, and height of luminaries including both building and ground fixtures; B. A description of the luminaries, including lamps, poles or other supports and shielding devices, which may be provided as catalogue illustrations and product specifications from the manufacturer; C. Photometric data, such as that furnished by the manufacturer, showing the angle of light emission; and D. Additional information as may be required by the Planning Department in order to determine compliance with this Section. General Standards For All Areas: A. Unless otherwise specified, the maximum light level shall be 0.5 footcandle at any residential property line and 1.0 footcandle at any non- residential property line. B. All flood lights shall be installed such that the fixture shall be aimed down at least forty -five (45) degrees from vertical, or the front of the fixture is shielded such that no portion of the light bulb extends below the bottom edge of an external shield. C. Any facilities that require floodlighting may not arrange the light in such a way that it will shine towards 7 00.7 roadways, onto adjacent residential property or into the night sky. D. All flood lamps emitting 1,000 or more lumens shall be aimed at least sixty (60) degrees down from the horizontal, or shielded such that the main beam from the light source is not visible from adjacent properties or the public street right -of -way. E. All wall pack fixtures shall be cutoff fixtures. F. All lights shall be shielded in such a way as to direct light towards the Earth's surface and away from reflective surfaces, except as expressly exempted from the provisions of these regulations. G. Any luminaire with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than 1,800 lumens, and all flood or spot luminaires with a lamp or lamps rated at a total of more than 900 lumens, shall not emit any direct light above the horizontal plane through the lowest direct- light- emitting part of the luminaire. H. Any temporary outdoor lighting that conforms to the .requirements of this Section shall be allowed. Nonconforming temporary outdoor lighting may be permitted by the Planning Director after considering: 1) the public and/or private benefits that will result from the temporary lighting, 2) any annoyance or safety problems that may result from the use of the temporary lighting, and 3) the duration of the temporary nonconforming lighting. I. If any subdivision proposes to have installed street or other common or public area outdoor lighting, the final plat shall contain a statement certifying that the applicable provisions of the Orange County Outdoor Lighting Standards will be adhered to. The required Lighting Plan and associated documents shall be submitted and approved by the Planning Department prior to installation of any regulated lighting. J. Upward flagpole lighting is permitted for governmental flags only, and provided that the maximum lumen output is 1300 lumens. Flags are encouraged to be taken down at sunset to avoid the need for lighting. 008 K. Any interior lighted signs may not be lit at night when the face of the sign is removed or damaged in such a way that the light may distract drivers or adjacent property owners. L. Any light fixture must be placed in such a manner that no light emitting surface is visible from any residential area or public /private roadway, walkway, trail or other public way when viewed at ground level. 6.31.7 Lighting in Parking Lots and Outdoor Areas A. Other than flood lights and flood lamps, all outdoor area and parking lot lighting fixtures shall be cutoff fixtures. B. The mounting height of all outdoor lighting, except outdoor sports field lighting and outdoor performance area lighting, shall not exceed thirty -six (36) feet above finished grade. C. Any light fixture must be placed in such a manner that no light emitting source surface is visible from any residential area or public /private roadway. 6.31.8 Lighting for Vehicular Canopies, Areas under a vehicular canopy shall have a maximum point of horizontal illuminance of twenty -four (24) maintained footcandles (fc). Areas outside the vehicular canopy shall be regulated by Section 6.31.5. acceptable methods include one or more of the following: A. Recessed fixture incorporating a lens cover that is either recessed or flush with the bottom surface (ceiling) of the vehicular canopy. B. Light fixture incorporating shields, or shielded by the edge of the vehicular canopy itself so that light is restrained to five degrees or more below the horizontal plane. C. Surface mounted fixture incorporating a flat glass that provides a cutoff fixture or shielded light distribution. D. Indirect lighting where light is beamed upward and then reflected down from the underside of the vehicular canopy. Such fixtures shall be shielded such 9 00 -9 that direct illumination is focused exclusively on the underside of the vehicular canopy. E. Other method approved by the Planning Director. 6.31.9 Outdoor Sports Field/ Outdoor Performance Area A. The mounting height of outdoor sports field and outdoor performance area lighting fixtures shall not exceed sixty (60) feet from finished grade unless approved by the Planning Director after receipt of sufficient evidence indicating the need for additional height. B. All outdoor sports field and outdoor performance area lighting fixtures shall be equipped with a glare control package (louvers, shields, or similar devices). The fixtures must be aimed so that heir beams are directed and fall within the primary playing or performance area. C. The hours of operation for the lighting system for any game or event shall not exceed on hour after the end of the event. 6.31.10 Lighting of Outdoor Display Areas A. Top mounted fixtures required for legally existing lighted signs. Lighting fixtures used to externally illuminate an outdoor advertising sign shall be mounted on the top of the sign structure. All such fixtures shall comply with the shielding requirements of this Section. Bottom mounted outdoor advertising shall not be used. B. Outdoor advertising signs of the type constructed of translucent materials and wholly illuminated from within do not require shielding. Dark backgrounds with light lettering or symbols are preferred, to minimize detrimental effects. Unless conforming to the above dark background preference, total lamp wattage per property shall be less than 41 watts. C. Compliance Limit. Existing outdoor advertising structures shall be brought into compliance within three (3) years from the date of adoption of this provision. 010 10 D. Prohibitions. Electrical illumination of outdoor advertising off -site signs between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and sunrise is prohibited. 6.31.11 Lighting of Buildings and Landscaping. Lighting fixtures shall be selected, located, aimed, and shielded so that direct illumination is focused exclusively on the building fagade, plantings, and away from adjoining properties, public or private rights -of -way, and the night sky. 6.31.12 Prohibitions A. The use of laser source light or any similar high intensity light for outdoor advertising or entertainment, when projected above the horizon, is prohibited. B. The operation of searchlights for advertising purposes is prohibited. C. Electrical illumination of outdoor advertising off -site signs is prohibited. D. Use of mercury vapor luminaires is prohibited. 6.31.13 Severability Should any section, clause or paragraph of this Section be declared by court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the same will not affect the validity of the Ordinance as a whole or part hereof other than the part declared to be invalid. 11 Section 3. This ordinance is effective upon its adoption. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Orange County Commissioners that this ordinance entitled "An Ordinance Amending the Zoning Ordinance of Orange County" be adopted. Upon motion of Commissioner Commissioner this day of seconded by the foregoing ordinance was adopted 2003. I, Donna S. Baker, Clerk to the Board of Commissioners for Orange County, DO HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing is a true copy of so much of the proceedings of said Board at a meeting held on 2003 as relates in any way to the adoption of the foregoing and that said proceedings are recorded in the minutes of the said Board. WITNESS my hand and the seal of said County, this day of 2003. SEAL Clerk to the Board of Commissioners Oil 012 0,4Z --,cgn6 -00<1 1. Orange County Zoning Ordinance Text Amendments A — C; 71 1 5 ?4 Verbatim Minutes from audiotape of the Text Amendment regarding Outdoor Lighting. C f CL, Nicole Gooding -Ray, Chair, Orange County Planning Board: "The first item on the agenda is an Orange County Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment regarding Outdoor Lighting and we are going to hear a presentation from staff." Craig Benedict, Director Orange County Planning Department: "My name is Craig Benedict, Orange County Planning Director. Tonight we will be addressing four items. The first three items are amendments to our Zoning Ordinance. The last item is a subdivision amendment, which is very closely related to enforcement provisions that are noted in the zoning. So, we have items, actually the third and fourth items we'll be talking about tonight are enforcement provisions: One for subdivision and one for zoning. "The first item has to do with Outdoor Lighting Standards. Presently, the County has limited standards for outdoor lighting. I'll do a presentation talking about some new standards there. "The second item has to do with stream buffers. Presently stream buffers and streams are identified by U.S.G.S. maps. We are increasing the definitions we have for stream identification. a. Amend Article 6 to establish Outdoor Lighting Standards Craig Benedict: "I will move my location now to the dais behind you and I will start off with the outdoor lighting "My staff will get the people who have signed in for the public hearing and I do understand that there are some people who do want to speak on a few of these items. "Since we do have two meetings wrapped into one tonight, we will move with all due speed and with all proper comment that we can as we go through these items tonight. The first item that we are taking a look at tonight is outdoor lighting standards. This is something that has been put together based on comments from both our Planning Board, from the citizens that see new developments come in the area, and from the Commission for the Environment who has also taken up this as something to examine. The one area that we are talking about presently is existing standards, which are just limited to our economic development districts. And even within the economic development districts, there are minor references to where the lights are located and things of that nature. We will talk about the proposed standards and we will talk about not just lighting but the amount of energy and energy conservation that is involved in lighting. And we will talk about what it means when you change regulations from one thing to the next. "Presently the only reference to asking for lighting standards in our present code is a section at the end of our implementation guidelines that says "and any other information that is necessary." And so we have asked for this information when we review site plans. Most rural subdivisions are not putting lighting in them so we are in no way asking for people to light rural subdivisions; but if they do, we want to make sure of the light spill is a minimum. And as I mentioned, economic development districts do have some standards there. The proposed standards do a few different things. The amount of light spill that comes in different areas of the county if the lighting standards are not appropriate can cause a certain amount of sky glow and it can damage the typical night sky that a lot of people enjoy. "This light pollution that I think a lot of people can attest to in the last five to ten years has been appreciable. And was even recognized last week on a foggy night when I was driving back from Carrboro and in the distance on Highway 54 you could see a major glow. I said that this could not be Burlington or Graham. It was a small car dealership out in White Cross area, that looked like there was some sort of major sale going on there. "So even some small projects can have quite an impact upon the rural environment. Besides the businesses and residences, this light pollution can affect the enjoyment of the night, the dark sky, and enjoyment by the neighbors. You will also notice that driving conditions based on inappropriate lighting can also cause hazards while driving. And energy conservation, we just didn't want to limit it to light pollution, we understand that in our age of energy star housing where we are reducing the amount of energy necessary for housing, there is also a way of reducing the amount of energy for lighting and you have noticed the different color -coded lighting out there." "There are certain types of lighting that are high- energy consumption. And what we are suggesting, at least at the public hearing stage, is the prohibition of mercury vapor lighting, which is, as we have analyzed, high- energy consumption. And there is a chart which we will go to next that gives an example of some of the lighting fixtures that are available and some of the costs that accrue to the people who pay the bill afterwards." "Now we also understand that the costs of the initial installation is part of the capital improvement and costs of providing these facilities, but also if you take a look at the cost of the electric service afterwards, by reducing this long term electric consumption, the need and dependency on sources of electricity could be brought down. "Also another initiative that we are taking a look at is where possible and where feasible and applicable, we are encouraging the use of solar lighting, and solar lighting technology which has over the last five years moved forward in leaps and bounds and we are interested in proceeding with some sort of solar lighting application at our building in Orange County. The lighting was knocked down in a storm a few years and we are still without signs and without lighting and so we hope to have some new technology for solar lighting for the sign. This is just a quick chart of energy conservation — low pressure sodium, 35 watts, annual operating costs about $19.00, high pressure sodium —75 watt fixtures, about $30.00, middle halide- 100watt bulbs, $37.00 approximately, and mercury vapor —175 watts, $67.00. "So you can see almost 3Y2 times the cost of providing lighting with different types of fixtures and applications. Now there is a combination- it doesn't mean that you have to provide 3 Y2 times as many lighting fixtures as low- pressure sodium to make the project work. This is just an example of what we have done in energy conservation analysis to make sure that future lights take that into consideration. We hope that the benefits abound and to improve driving conditions but still allowing for appropriate security for people that want to preserve their property, using conservation measures to reduce our dependency on electricity, using these solar opportunities, supporting the dark skies initiative so people can enjoy the stars out there. And also taking a look at lighting so that it is used for its intended purposes of security and invisibility and using crime prevention through environmental design techniques. So those are some of the positive consequences. "So that is in essence where we are going with the new amendments to our lighting standards. That is all for the presentation that Robert has tonight. We did recognize a note that came in from Duke Power that mentioned a few sections of our Ordinance. I just read this before the meeting and they said that some parts of the ordinance were good and they would like to work with us on some other parts that discussed such as the prohibition of mercury halide lights. We do have certain clauses about how this would apply to new development and things like that that we have been working with the industry and have been applying some of these new concepts with some new projects that have been coming on line on a volunteer basis. So we are optimistic that these are both functional and usable by the development community and by the electric contractors and by the power companies. If there are any questions for me that I will be able to field them, if not, there are some speakers that have signed up and we can move to that section. Chair Brown asked if they were going to get a response from the staff on all the questions brought forward by Duke Power. Craig Benedict said they would respond item by item before they go to the Planning Board. Commissioner Carey had a question about section 6.31.61-11, regarding intrusiveness of lighting. He wanted to know what non - conforming meant regarding sliding scale. Craig Benedict explained this. Public Comment: Mark Smith — OC Commission for the Environment. "Thank you for all the work you do every day doing this commissioner stuff. It is scary for me to look at your schedules. So does everyone have this in front of you? This is a presentation I prepared a while ago and gave to the Commission for the Environment and then to some people on the Planning Board and I guess originated the Ordinance you are seeing now and I am not going to go through the whole thing, it takes a little longer than I think is reasonable given that you've got like four sessions going for one. "But there is a lot of information in here about what light pollution consists of, the amount of waste, the environment impacts that are involved, security and safety issues, and a lot of things that Craig already touched on. I am not going to go over all that again. I think just for reference purposes, let's go ahead and flip to the pictures here, which Craig can put them up there too, the good, the bad, and the ugly. "I just want to give us all a (and I am going to apologize to everyone in the room here, you are going to go home looking at light fixtures, driving down the road now and moaning about bad lighting and good lighting, at least until we get this Ordinance implemented, not for the rest of your natural life hopefully). So the first 3 of these basically give you an idea of what good basic lighting designs are. "And the idea with this Ordinance, as I am looking at it, is to just have good fixtures put in and it is a pretty simple matter; it is just an engineering, a technical fix. The idea is to have the light shining down on the things that you want to light up and not in your eyes, not creating glare and not creating safety and security concerns where you can't see what you are supposed to be trying to look at. And the way this works is that the first 3 pictures are called full cut -off fixtures. Basically they do not let the light go above the level of the fixture. And so for light pollution purposes that keeps the light, except what is reflecting off the moisture in the air, below the fixture off the pavement and keeps it from ending up in the sky and also saves you a whole lot of light, saves you a lot of energy. And so you have regular street lights here, go back a couple, and this is what you would want to put out in this parking lot instead of these acorns that basically emit light almost 360 degrees and just spray it up in the air. "The 3`d one which shows that even for a regular parking lot you can put a fixture in a box so that if you are back far enough away from it is not in your eyes and all the light is going down. Then you have two options for a sign, either from above or these internally lit signs that work really well. Then there are the bad fixtures and there are many of them. "You can get the totally ugly effect, which you can get by driving straight back towards Chapel Hill, just as you come up over the hill. So, in the summation page, light pollution is a problem in most places in this country where they do not have a comprehensive Ordinance and that includes Orange County. "So we have got a good start on the Ordinance. For this to actually be a success this is kind of like air pollution the light knows no boundaries, so getting the same things happening in other jurisdictions in the towns and at the university would be something I would want to motivate. So to the degree that we could get an ad hoc countywide working group for a little while working on this and try and get some uniformity on these things that would be great. "One thing just occurred to me, it is possible to even light ball fields and things that you would think would just have to create this big ball of light. With the right shielding you can make even ball fields and big facilities like that pretty tolerable in the neighborhood. So we can actually bring back the stars in town and that has been done in a lot of bigger cities where astronomers were being put out of business. And I know it takes a while for Ordinances and the lifecycle of these fixtures to go through, but as far as the state -of- the -art fixtures and light pollution approaches in all county facilities goes, I think that is something that can just be done by the people that are planning the facilities. "And I would really encourage that and the last thing that I want to ask for is that we get a referral on this Ordinance so that we can take a look at it officially for the Commission for the Environment. "And on a completely different topic, I was the recipient of an Orange County Arts Commission grant last year and there is a pile of these CDs over there that were a result of that (five or six) and they are for you all. Thank you very much." Bill Walser. "Hi, I am Bill Walser, a resident of Orange County. I am a lifetime member of the International Dark Sky Association, which basically made the presentation. I am an amateur astronomer and I have a private observatory just off Dodson's Cross Roads where I do deep space imaging. It's a university quality facility and there are a number of other amateur astronomers in the area, who until just recently have enjoyed very dark skies. "As the staff said, the last five years have been brutal on the sky. I came in tonight to encourage you to see this Ordinance through to completion. It is very important right now in Orange County as the rural buffer zone is being heavily developed. It is such a simple problem to solve as Mark said. "The idea is simply to have people buy fixtures that light what they want lit. You look at these domes of light that half of the light is going up into space, that is just energy that is wasted. "The first night that Carrboro turned on their new Municipal home, I thought Carrboro was burning down from my little property, which is about 12 miles away because of the huge dome that it put up that was not there the night before. So I drove down the next day and immediately recognized what the problem was, at least Carrboro didn't burn down. "But that's why this is so important; it just takes a few lights with excess energy being wasted with this tremendous wattage going up into the air. This is particularly true during the summer season, where humidity is high in the air and you tend to trap all that light and the moisture and it produces these light domes which are as polluting as if you had put chemicals in the water to the air. Fortunately it is much simpler to solve this problem than it is a lot of types of pollution, because every major light fixture company in the country has fixtures that conform to a large number of these Ordinances. "And so it is not even a problem of shopping or finding the right thing. Every one of them makes conforming and non - conforming fixtures and it is just a simple matter for the architects to specify conforming fixtures and it saves the tenants a lot of money. So there are very few people who find a problem with it and the power companies are typically the only people who find a problem with it and even those people are trying hard to be responsible about energy savings and it is a very tough argument for them. "You know in a lot of jurisdictions they make a quick retrofit and that is a big problem. Here, the Ordinance is not proposing a retrofit until the particular fixture needs to be replaced. So it is all just going forward and that is why it is so important with the development that is going on in the county. "So I felt like I needed to come forward and encourage all the people involved with this. And I have to say the staff of Orange County has done a remarkable job of research and looking at Ordinances in other parts of the country and looking at the engineering aspects of it and looking at the basic common sense application of it without going either overboard or not having an effective Ordinance and I hope that in some form similar to the draft it will get eventually accepted. Thank you." Ron Osborne: "Thank you. My name is Ron Osborne, and I am here tonight representing Duke Power regarding the Ordinance. My position with Duke Power is that I am the Engineering Supervisor for the Durham, Burlington, Chapel Hill service areas that encompasses all of Orange County, most of Durham County, Alamance County, and parts of Guilford, counties to the north and south and everything. I wanted to lead off by saying that I am heartened by the actions the County is taking with regard to light pollution and light trespass and I think that this is something that needs to be addressed probably in most jurisdictions. I applaud Orange County for taking a look at it. "Duke's interest in this is to make sure that the Ordinance is simple to follow which will equate to compliance, which will equate to effectiveness. And to that end, and to the intent of trying to limit light trespass, the remarks that we have provided are geared toward that. Let me just say a couple of things because I appreciated the preceding speakers. "The first thing is that part of my business is to look at lights all the time whenever I'm riding down the road so I know how everybody feels when you start thinking about things and you start looking up. And I do see lights all the time that are creating problems. And it is relatively simple to fix them. And I think that the Ordinance can address that. "The other thing that I want to mention is because I found some common ground. I live in rural Alamance County, not far from what is called "Three College Observatory." I've been up there a couple of times with my children to observe the heavens, and the light pollution is a problem. It is getting worse, especially on a foggy night. The moisture in the air does cause a problem. And if you go out and look, you'll probably notice that some of the greatest offenders, unfortunately, are governmental agencies. You look at the highway lighting down 1 -85 and you look at the lighting over different municipalities. And it is going to be a tough issue to tackle unless municipalities and governmental lighting is included. And, again, I applaud Orange County because, based on my interpretation of the Ordinance, that has not been ignored. So, I think that is a good step. "I mentioned seven things in the memo that was sent, which I will not go over again because you've got them with you tonight, but I just wanted to mention a couple of highlights. "One is the Section 631.5, which refers to the submittal of plans and designs for lighting applications. This is of concern to Duke Power from the standpoint that, due to the volume of lighting and everything, it is going to be challenging for everything to be submitted and reviewed. I'm not saying it cannot be done, but the burden of the submittal and the approval process will fall upon the requesting party. And it would be up to a public utility like Duke Power since we would have to have that come in hand from the requesting party to us. That is not a service that could be performed under the current rate structure. So that translates into extra costs to a requesting party to have that submitted and brought to us, something that is approvable. Again, I don't think that Duke Power has a position on that. We are just making everybody aware that that is a direct action of the Ordinance that will take place. "A lot of lights that Duke Power puts in are situations where there is a farmer or somebody that has a convenience store or just somebody's gotten their own home and they want a light installed. Duke Power supplies lights under the North Carolina Utility Commission, which approves the light selection that is installed. And, currently, the guidelines we follow to put the lights up are fairly straightforward and our desire is that they remain so under the Ordinance. "The simplest way to do that is to make the foundational Ordinance the requirement of cut -off fixtures, which I think would probably address 90 percent of the light pollution, light trespass problem that we see today. The biggest irritant is the point source of light that you see when you are outside looking at the light, and that light is not directed on the surface, it's directed out, and even a relatively small light from a distance will be an irritant just because of that point source that you can see. A cut -off fixture would address that and it is something very simple to do. "One caveat to that, to governmental agencies in that when you use cut -off fixtures, it requires more fixtures in a given area to illuminate the same surface such as a roadway. We first experimented with cut -off lighting in the Charlotte Metropolitan area over 20 years ago, and it has very many advantages, but one of its disadvantages is that often times it takes more lights in a distance to have the same uniformity ratio and the same illumination. "So, what that translates to is more cost for agencies requesting lights, DOT, municipalities, even private parties that want to illuminate a subdivision. I'm not saying that this is a bad thing. It is just a fact of life that will happen in many cases. "The other item I wanted to mention is the prohibition of mercury vapor. One thing to keep in mind on that is that, currently, that is the low -cost option as approved by the Utility Commission for most requesting parties. Mercury vapor is available in cut -off fixtures so the light pollution issue would be addressed but the consumption issue would remain. "One side note about the consumption issue: the rates for mercury vapor lights are a flat rate, it's not based on consumption, it is based on a flat rate. Mercury vapor fixtures are a low - cost option because it is less costly to install and it's less costly to maintain. The rates are set and they are based on the cost of the consumption, the cost of the facilities and the cost that Duke Power has to expend going out there and making a repair trip. Metal halide has more maintenance involved than the mercury vapor, even though it is more efficient. So there are some trade -offs. It's not a linear comparison that can be made sometimes. "The other thing is that the electricity that is used for lighting at night is really not wasted energy. I know that is hard to comprehend sometimes but the power system that Duke Power and the other utilities use to generate electricity is designed to address peak loading situations which occur during the daytime. We have to build that generation whether we use it or not. And at night when the load is down, we've still got that generation available at really no extra cost. And using it for illumination actually offsets the cost during peak times. It's kind of like building a four -lane road to get to Kenan Stadium but you only need it ten times a year, but you've got that road there and it would be nice if you could use it every day of the year and offset the cost of it, and that is how lighting is viewed. And again the flat rate and the maintenance cost are considered in what the Commission approves for us to build. "In closing, I would like to say that Duke Power, and I, myself, would be glad to continue the dialogue with the County and other interested parties. We appreciate the opportunity we've had so far. We look forward to getting an effective, and simple and, ultimately, workable Ordinance." A. Nicole Gooding -Ray "Is there anyone who was not signed up to speak who would like to speak to this issue at this time? OK." Barry Jacobs "I would like to make some comments. First, unless I missed it, I didn't see anything in here about subdivision signs, which are basically advertising signs. We don't light our street signs. I don't see why we would allow the lighting of subdivision signs. "I would like to second Mr. Bryan's comment. I think it would be probably more in keeping with Duke Power recommendation to have a simple, cleaner way of looking at fixtures on a periodic basis. I don't know how that affects the exemptions. C, if you are talking about publicly funded streetlights or if you are talking about all streetlights. I'm not sure we have control over publicly funded streetlights, but we do have over privately funded streetlights. Probably the grossest light polluter in central Orange County is DOT's new interchange at Efland, which you can, I would think you could see from satellites going around the earth. And I would hope that when we get to the point that we have something adopted that we bring this to the attention of our Division Engineer and express our concerns because that's a real shame what they've done right in the middle of the County. "And another egregious example would be the bank as you are coming into Hillsborough on Old 86. 1 wonder if under 6.31.11 — Lighting On Buildings and Landscaping - if you could just review that section and think about that bank, and think if this Ordinance adequately covers the gluttony that's involved in the bathing of that building in unnecessary light all night. "And also, I would just like to suggest that on 6.31.9c: I think you want to say, "shall not exceed one hour after the end of the event." "Thank you." Moses Carey, Jr. "I heard one of the speakers speak and he was encouraging, he was admiring the way the existing lighting or amortization of existing lighting was dealt with in the Ordinance, but I heard someone, one of our Planning Board members ask about an Amortization Schedule rather than the way we've dealt with it in here. And I think I heard you speak favorably of the way it was dealt with in here. "Does any of the other speakers have any comments on whether one or the other of those approaches..." Nicole Gooding — Ray "If you could come to the podium to do that. I'm sorry." Ron Osborne: " Ideally, an amortized period of replacement would be the perfect world, that would be a wonderful thing. My personal feeling is that it is much more important to get a good ordinance on the books at this stage of our development. Given Duke Power's concerns, I don't see any of those issues that are not easy to work out. If you start reaching into people's pocketbooks and with fixtures that they've had over a number of years and pushing them, you're going to get some vocal opposition. To me it's much more important that we contain the growth of bad lighting in Orange County. Time will take care of itself. You know that the International Dark Skies made a huge effort in Manhattan, which most people would think is an impossible task and they didn't even do it by retrofitting. But what happens is that in Manhattan because of the aggressive retailing environment, facades are redone; often, store windows are redesigned; storefronts are redesigned, and every time it is renovated, it has to conform. Within ten years they did an unbelievable job of reducing vertical light pollution out of Manhattan. Of course, the problem is everything around Manhattan is still non - conforming. That was the reason I said that. Not that it would not be ideal to do that, but, my personal feeling is that it is very important to get this on the books and functional, and protect us from what could happen in a rapid developing period without any ordinance." Moses Carey. Jr. "So you don't think we have a perfect world here ?" Ron Osborne "No." (Laughed) Moses Carey, Jr. "Thank you." Ron Osborne "If I can make a brief comment on your question, as well. The suggestion I would like to propose is that the Ordinance address all new installations initially, and, then, maybe be revisited in incremental steps to see, if, based on its efficacy, does it need to go back and revisit retrofitting. "The retrofitting issue is problematic from several standpoints. Number one is, just as it has been mentioned; it's going to get into someone's pocketbook. Someone's light goes out and then all of a sudden you inform them, 'Oh, by the way, now we're going to have to up that, fixture or whatever. It's going to be an increased cost. I think the important thing to do would be to stop the bleeding based on the new installations. And, then, over time, I think that the grandfathered or the existing installations would probably be addressed, because eventually they do wear out. Eventually lightning strikes and things hit things. But what we would desire from Duke Power's standpoint is something that does not place an undue burden on the consumer and that can be done in an orderly and logical fashion. "You may have a situation, and it could be a municipality or a County agency or private party that has a whole system of lights. One light needs to be replaced. Because it's replaced and does not match the rest of the system, it could impact the, not only the esthetics but the illumination quality of that system. So, it needs to be looked at more carefully than just a wholesale retrofit that gets triggered. I would like to offer you that Duke Power wants to be a good steward of the system that we have, and we want to make sure that we are making the best decisions for the community because we live here, too. I look forward to the day, I live in southern Alamance County, I look forward to the day that Alamance County has some sort of ordinance, again, that is not reactive, but it is proactive. That is what I would hope that Orange County pursues. Barry Jacobs "May I ask Mr. Osborne a question? How much does it cost to install a shield on one of the sodium vapor street lights ?" Ron Osborne "When you say a shield, there are two types. There's what's called a nemahead, which is what you see in most people's backyards. The bulb is in there vertically. And for years, things were done like paint the sides of them, or whatever. That's not proved to be very effective. Duke Power ceased the practice of doing that about five years ago. There are probably some of them out there, but it's just not very effective. Cost wise, I don't know what the cost of the actual material would be, but the cost of sending somebody out there and performing the work, especially if that cost is not passed on to somebody, which ultimately it would be, you're probably looking at a minimum of someone in the fifty to the one - hundred dollar range, by the time you assessed it, got the material, went out there and did the work and did everything like that. "Just to give you an example, we have a policy that if we relocate a pole, which involves going out there and having somebody take the fixture off the pole and put it on another pole; this is a flat rate of $268. And sometimes it's less than that and sometimes it's more, but that's kind of an average. So, it's not always cheap. The workforce that we have to utilize, they have to be experts doing what they're doing because moving a light is a relatively simple matter, but they've got to be prepared for all kinds of contingencies, so it's not always that cheap." Barry Jacobs "Thank you. I'd like to request that staff look into that. Piedmont Electric said that they would do that for nothing that the owner of the light had to request it, not the person whose house it's shining into. So, I would be very interested in knowing if it's different by utility or, maybe, I'm not using the correct term of arc, but that was the information that I got, and that would certainly influence whether I thought it was a reasonable thing. If it's going to be less reasonable, then, I might want to consider at least having it done for governmental entities so that their lights are phased out over a period of time, so that, at least the schools and the municipalities and the County phased out the lights that are polluting and take, and again, as we often say, lead by example. Nicole Gooding — Rav "Commissioner Halkiotis." Commissioner Halkiotis "I just wanted to make sure that Craig and the staff were certain to get some of the proposals out to the Chambers of Commerce on both ends of the County. I've been around this County long enough to know that I have seen laser shows for both advertising and entertainment, indoors and outdoors, and I've also seen a lot of search lights, from Chapel Hill Boulevard to Hillsborough and parts north and west. I think it would be just a good policy to get this before both Chambers to let the business community know what's being proposed here." Nicole Gooding -Rav "Mr. Bryan." Jay Bryan, Planning Board Member "I have a couple of quick things. There are a couple of places in the Ordinance where it talks about cut -off features. And my suggestion would be that where it says "cut -off' it should be really full cut -off. That means that you don't let the light horizontal. I didn't see the term full cut -off so I'm not sure how this would apply but that's one suggestion. "The second one was that the lighting plan, for instance in other ordinances, show consideration for energy — efficient lighting and that kind of thing. That's made a part of what's being required. "Thirdly, there wasn't anything about how you measure light, that is how the County, measures light and this could complicate the Ordinance by that, but there's nothing in there that defines that. Nicole Gooding — Rav "Ok, Ms. Price." Ms. Renee Price "People who spoke, whether they thought the issue was more the type of lighting, or whether it is the design of the light fixtures itself and, you know, which would actually achieve the lighting you want overall for the efficiency ?" Ron Osborne "it makes sense. While I've got my thought train, I wanted to make one comment. Mr. Jacobs, in the attachment that Duke Power provided, there are the rate schedules offered by the Commission. There's a contract period on the lights which helps Duke Power recoup the investment and everything. If the light was replaced once that contract period for whatever the light is, and it varies depending on the type of light, was met, then that cost would be greatly reduced. What hurts is when the light has just been put up and then you've got to go out there because you haven't recouped your investment from the time spent. So, that is a factor in there. "Regarding your question, it would probably be answered by the first two speakers from their concerns and their perspective. I would say that from Duke Power's perspective and my professional experiences that the type of light, as far as metal halide, mercury vapor, high pressure sodium, low pressure sodium is a lot of times a matter of personal preference, esthetics, you know the color rendition. Each one is designed to do something differently. Of course the metal halide, the bright white light, is what looks the nicest but it is also the most expensive from the standpoint of maintenance, materials and equipment. "The light trespass issue is more of improper application or the use of fixtures that are not the cut -off fixtures because when the light projects below that fixture, it's not always shining down on the surface intended. It's also bleeding out to the side. And you can see a small point of light for miles away. Again, from the southern part of Alamance County you can see those lights for miles and miles even on a clear night when there is no moisture in the air. It's not the light that's being projected on the roadway. You could have the same type lights, same wattage and everything, but if you had the cut -off lens, it would be down on the roadway and not that point of light that you see from miles away. I think it's the application, the type of fixture, that's the biggest offender." Ms. Price "And what about the efficiency? That is what I meant. Does it mean that we have several low wattages, I mean, would we have like a hundred low wattage light fixtures for a certain area. What would that cost as compared to having say a lesser amount of the brighter lights but with the proper shielding and if you don't have the domes. Ron Osborne "From a lighting design point, you are usually better off having a lot of low wattage lights because that helps what is called the uniformity ratio. It's the ratio of the brightest area to the darkest area. But oftentimes if you are talking about more lights, that's more poles. You know that is more things for a car to run into, more poles sitting in somebody's yard, especially if it's a street project. The property owner buys rights, and very understandably doesn't want a pole in their front yard. Then you can't shift a pole fifty feet so it's not right in front of their house because then it throws out your uniformity ratio and your spacing. So, that's why there are a variety of fixtures and pole sizes and bracket lengths and everything else, because one size does not fit all. "To give you an example, on State highways, the Department of Transportation requires a lighting encroachment, just like they should. Any portion of light falling on the DOT highway has to be approved just like a pole sitting in a right of way would have. It's very hard to make one size fit all. So that's why there are a lot of varieties of different fixtures and lighting types and everything else. But the one basic common thread that can be addressed is the use of cut- off fixtures. It will impact adversely the spacing somewhat, but the gains from the elimination of that point source of light, being an irritant, from my experience, and I think the experience of like the City of Charlotte and other large municipalities is that it is worth it." Nicole Gooding — Ray "Ok. Are there any further questions ?" "Is there a motion ?" Chair Brown "I move that we refer this to the Planning Board and return it to the Board of Commissioners no later than May 20th.,, Commissioner Gordon "I'd make that a motion and I'd add to refer to the Commission for the Environment, if it's the Board's pleasure. So it would read, 'Administration recommends referring the proposed amendment to the Planning Board and Commission for the Environment for a recommendation to be returned to the Board of Commissioners no sooner than May 20tn, 2003." Commissioner Jacobs "And do we want to have the Commission for the Environment make its recommendation to the Planning Board or are we going to get two separate recommendations ?" Commissioner Care v "I think we ought to have them make it to the Planning Board." Commissioner Jacobs "So do I. If that's your motion, then I will second it." Chair Brown "Motion and a second. All those in favor, please say 'Aye.' VOTE: UNANIMOUS [END OF DISCUSSION ON THE LIGHTING ORDINANCE] b. Amend Article 6.23.7 Stream Buffers and Article 22 Definitions to broaden the methods for identification of streams that require stream buffers. The specific change is to include a provision allowing use of the Soil Survey of Orange County and field identification by County staff to identify streams subject to stream buffers. A new definition for Water Feature is added as a part of the amendment. Craig Benedict made this presentation. He said that this is a change from the existing zoning code that talks about the identifying streams. The streams are identified on United States Geologic Survey maps (USGS). The suggestion is to increase the opportunities to identify streams with two additional methods. The first method is to use the Orange County Soil Survey maps. The Department of Water Quality has also put together a certification program where people can identify streams or identify that something is not a stream based on a list of criteria. The recommendation is to add this provision to the zoning code so that when subdivisions are analyzed, they can take into consideration all of the aspects of a stream. It has also been a goal of Orange County to protect the headwaters because 85% of all areas drained in the County are headwaters. An implication of this provision is that there will be additional stream miles that will be protected. Commissioner Jacobs asked if Mr. Feathers has seen a copy of this and Planner Robert Davis said that he was aware of it. Commissioner Gordon would like to have an estimate of the impact of this provision. She wants to protect streams as much as possible, but she wonders what the impact would be on people's properties since so much of Orange County might be in this classification. There were no Planning Board comments. Public Comment There was no one signed up to speak to this item, but Chair Gooding -Ray asked if anyone would like to speak. Robert Nichols, a retired dairy farmer, said that he went to the Planning Department today to ask about this provision. He said that Craig Benedict said in the presentation that the stream buffer would be from 130 -170 feet. On his property this would take about 37 acres of his 175 acres. He would like to know what he can and cannot do with this property. He asked if he could harvest the timber. Craig Benedict said that if his property is a bona fide farm and forestry operations is what is planned for the property, then he would be following forestry regulations as sanctioned by the State and it would not fall under these zoning regulations. Bona fide farms are exempt from zoning regulations.