Council advances first reading on lighting rules, single‑stair design and NEC adoption

On first reading council advanced Ordinance 26‑11 to amend Title 15 (buildings and construction). The package contains three distinct changes: updated lighting standards grounded in dark‑sky principles, a procedure to adopt the current National Electric Code automatically when the state updates it, and an optional single‑stairway design for certain multifamily projects.

Planner Claire Perez walked council through the lighting rules, which propose warmer exterior lighting (2,700–3,000 Kelvin), fixture‑definition clarifications, height limits for pole and balcony lighting and limits on uplighting; staff emphasized the rule applies to lighting installed after the ordinance’s effective date and that replacements would need to conform. Councilmembers asked whether existing fixtures must be retrofitted (staff said replacements would trigger compliance, not immediate retrofits), debated holiday‑lighting language (blink/flash vs. twinkle), and raised enforcement pathways via code‑enforcement forms and community development review. On the single‑stairway approach, staff said the optional design would permit up to four stories with conditions (fire ratings, corridor standards, floor area limits) and that the town has engaged fire‑protection officials on safety concerns; council scheduled further public hearings and approved first reading 6–0.

Council asked staff to clarify wording where the draft seemed to require all exterior lighting to comply immediately and to tighten uplighting language (flag and sign exceptions were discussed). Staff agreed to reword applicability, confirm whether "exterior" versus "interior/exterior" language is consistent across the document and to return with a refined draft for second reading.