Commission backs ordinance to limit commercial exterior lighting to 3,000K

On Sept. 2 the Creve Coeur Planning & Zoning Commission voted to recommend that the City Council adopt a zoning-code amendment to regulate exterior lighting color temperature, proposing a maximum correlated color temperature (CCT) of 3,000 Kelvin for non-single-family properties.

Jason Jagie, director of community development, presented the draft amendment and cited research and neighboring municipalities that have adopted similar limits. Jagie described the practical effect: new or replacement commercial lighting that requires a site plan or building permit would need to meet the 3,000K limit; existing fixtures in service when the ordinance takes effect would be grandfathered until replaced. Jagie said utility-owned street lights (Ameren) and single-family homes are excluded from the rule because those are governed by other agreements or are difficult to administer at the household level.

Commissioners asked about enforcement and the scale of impact. Jagie explained staff would review CCT specifications during site-plan and building-permit reviews for projects that add or replace poles or lighting heads; replacement work that does not require a permit would be handled through a complaint-based investigation, as with other code matters. He said the staff reviewed neighboring municipal codes and found 3,000K a commonly used standard that developers can meet.

A commissioner moved to recommend the text amendments described in the draft ordinance; the motion was seconded and carried on the commission record. The recommendation will be forwarded to City Council for consideration at a future meeting.

If adopted by council, the change would apply to non-single-family properties and newly installed or replaced lighting subject to permitting; staff noted an effective date approach and grandfathering for fixtures installed prior to that date to reduce immediate enforcement burdens.