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Harpers Ferry adopts Dark Sky Week proclamation and sends draft lighting ordinance to ORC for review
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Summary
Council approved a Dark Sky Week proclamation and debated clarifying revisions to a draft lighting ordinance (lumens metric, shielding, permitting language and code enforcement title change); the committee kept the current permitting flow and recommended formal review by the Ordinance Review Committee.
The Harpers Ferry Town Council voted April 13 to adopt a Dark Sky Week proclamation and received clarifying remarks from the town's dark-sky advocates and the draft ordinance committee.
The local chapter outlined Dark Sky International's five principles (useful lighting, targeted, downward-shielded, low color temperature and controlled operation) and noted the chapter would offer free home and lodging evaluations to help earn dark-sky compliance certification. The committee presenting draft ordinance revisions told council it had preserved the existing permitting process, clarified lighting metrics by using lumens (and equating 1 foot-candle with 1 lumen per square foot) and changed the title "ordinance compliance officer" to "code enforcement officer" in the draft.
Committee members emphasized the biggest practical change in the draft is requiring shielding and downward-facing fixtures for new builds and for property owners making outdoor lighting changes that trigger compliance review; routine existing lighting would not be automatically changed unless violations or complaints occur. Council moved the draft to the Ordinance Review Committee (ORC) for formatting and further review; the motion to refer passed 6-0. The proclamation (April 13-20, 2026) was adopted by the council at the meeting.
The presenters encouraged residents to consult the Bolivar-Harpers Ferry Library exhibit and the Dark Sky International website for educational materials and to consider simple bulb choices (warmer Kelvin ratings, dimmable/controllable fixtures) to reduce light trespass and sky glow.
