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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AND <br />PLANNING BOARD <br />QUARTERLY PUBLIC HEARING ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: August 24, 2009 <br />Action Agenda <br />Item No. C.1 <br />SUBJECT: Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment Relating to Outdoor Lighting <br />DEPARTMENT: Planning and Inspections PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) Yes <br />ATTACHMENT(S): <br />1. Proposed Ordinance Amendment <br />embedded staff comments <br />2. Ordinance Amendment <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />with Name <br />Michael D. Harvey, Planner <br />Craig Benedict, Director <br />Phone Number <br />245 -2607 <br />245 -2592 <br />PURPOSE: To hold a public hearing on a Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment to modify <br />existing regulations relating to the review, approval, and use of outdoor lighting fixtures. <br />BACKGROUND: Section 6.31 Outdoor Lighting Standards of the Orange County Zoning <br />Ordinance (hereafter 'the Ordinance') contains various provisions relating to the application and <br />use of outdoor lighting fixtures throughout the County. Recently, concern has been expressed <br />over the lack of specificity within the Ordinance, specifically: <br />1. The lack of clarity on how lighting plans are submitted and reviewed by staff, <br />2. The 'one size fits all' mentality of the existing regulations that treats projects within <br />urbanizing and rural portions of the County the same, and <br />3. A lack of specificity on the types of lighting fixtures that ought to be allowed for use by <br />outdoor sport fields and /or performance areas. <br />To respond to these concerns, the BOCC asked for staff to develop an amendment. Staff had <br />originally intended to complete a comprehensive retooling of existing outdoor lighting regulations <br />during the development of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), scheduled to commence <br />sometime this fall. Upon further review of the situation, staff determined that it would be appropriate <br />to engage in a modest revision of existing regulations to address immediate concerns while <br />continuing to plan for a more comprehensive re- assessment in the future. <br />PROPOSAL: Staff is proposing to amend Section 6.31 as follows: <br />1. Staff is proposing to develop an overall lighting limit on the development and use of <br />outdoor lighting fixtures for non - residential land uses. This limit varies depending on the <br />