Bellaire City Council postponed a vote on its proposed lighting ordinance to give time for city staff to return in the near future with the revisions and suggestions council members made at the Oct. 16 meeting.
Bellaire Mayor Andrew Friedberg said staff from the Bellaire Development Services Department will catalog all that was discussed and come back to council for further deliberation. No exact date was mentioned at the meeting.
Digging deeper
One of the lighting ordinance amendments under scrutiny was implementing an effective date that would require all existing outdoor lighting to comply with the new requirements.
Certain outdoor lighting, according to the ordinance draft, would not be regulated, including:
- Lighting within the public right of way that illuminates streets or roads
- Lighting used by police, fire, emergency or utility work personnel
- Lighting required by law to be installed on motor vehicles
Another ordinance topic that was debated included the penalty costs for those who failed to comply or were found in violation of the lighting ordinance.
- The fine, according to the draft, would be no less than $150 for the first offense, which would be considered a misdemeanor, and no less than $500 for any subsequent offense.
- For each day in which the violation occurs, the responsible party would incur a separate offense.
Council member Ross Gordon said weaponizing the enforcement of the lighting ordinance is going to be difficult and was concerned that once the standard is applied to existing lighting, it would be hard to enforce and differentiate standards between old and new developments.
“Every single homeowner could file a complaint against their neighbor. Now will they? No, but do we want to get into that situation?” Gordon said.
How we got here
The city of Bellaire started public discussions regarding the city’s existing noise and lighting ordinances in July 2022. On Feb. 9, the Bellaire Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed complaints filed with the Bellaire Police Department and Code Enforcement, concluding quality-of-life concerns exist in the city.
Explained
Since the last City Council town hall meeting June 6, other changes were made to the draft, including:
- Making the ordinance less severe on existing lighting to avoid issues and challenges with enforcement
- Removing lighting reduction criteria
Council member Catherine Lewis said there is an ongoing problem with what she called “lighting trespass,” including very bright lights that are pointed outward in neighboring properties.
“There are technicalities; there will always be technicalities, but ultimately, we're trying to solve a problem,” Lewis said.
