Learning Series: How to Talk to Your Local Government About a Lighting Ordinance

From January 2026

Transcript

Traci: Brad Kerry is an integral part of the DarkSky Ohio team. He serves as Director of Government Affairs. He has worked with several municipalities throughout the state to consult on dark sky lighting policy. He has also helped to enact Ohio’s first dark sky proclamation for the city of Fairborn this past year. He uses his background in economics and statistics to advocate for the stars. We are grateful that Brad is sharing his wealth of knowledge with us tonight. So Brad, take it away.

Brad: Awesome. Thank you everyone. I’m going to talk about how we can engage with our local government. I’ve worked in government for several years. My most recent stint, I worked very closely with zoning. I’ve made lighting ordinances that are about to pass up in Fairborn, that’s right next to the Air Force base, for those of you familiar with the area. We’re looking to get the whole southwest Ohio under some standards, and northeast Ohio and out near Lake Hope.

Topics I’m going to cover today:

1. Creating a tailored community message.
2. Gathering local support.
3. Finding your contacts within the government.
4. Submitting something actionable.
5. How to hold the government accountable.

Creating a Tailored Community Message

The biggest thing with any ordinance is that lighting can get touchy really quick because people don’t like you messing with their lights. Lights make us feel safe. They make us feel secure. The best thing you can do when engaging with a community lighting ordinance is make it tailored to the community and make sure that people are educated ahead of time. Talk to them on that level.

When we create this message, research the following:

• Find something your community is passionate about, whether it’s character, environmental, economic, or anything like that. Find something that reflects your community’s identity, and that’s where you start building.
• Review existing lighting ordinances. If your municipality has some form of external lighting ordinance, which most do, you can use that data and say, “I want to make sure our standards are meeting best practices by the IES.” The IES is the Illuminating Engineering Society, or the experts who determine how much light is needed per activity, whether that’s pedestrian or driving. They work with ANSI and other safety organizations to ensure lighting is safe and sufficient. If you can go to the city, write up an ordinance that matches IES standards, and present yourself as a concerned citizen wanting to make sure you’re up to standards, the government’s going to love you. IES also partners with DarkSky, so a lot of our recommendations go back and forth. If you follow IES, you’re pretty close to DarkSky standards.
• Look at the character and history of the community. For example, where I grew up in Centerville, there are a lot of limestone buildings. I believe we have the largest collection of limestone buildings in the nation. It’s a very historical area. You can use that to say, “I want to preserve the historical and character appeal of the community.” That resonates with a lot of people who live in those communities because of the aesthetic. Politics and social initiatives are also really important. Different communities have different political leanings and social priorities. Some might be environmentally focused. If you’re near Stonelick State Park, you might have a strong concern about water quality. If you’re in Fairborn, you may have a lot of Americana pride. If a town has been recently hit by car break-ins, there might be a strong concern about crime. Find an identity you can work into your community messaging. Economic benefits are another angle, things like helping to draw new businesses. You can also highlight reducing the impact of suburban sprawl. This is a big one for many communities. As much as we’d love to stop developing rural areas, that’s not realistic, but we can reduce the impact greatly by bringing in better lighting. This is something you can get a lot of people on board with quickly.

Once you’ve created an identity or a reason for the lighting code, remember that most cities, unfortunately, don’t care about wanting to see the stars. They have other concerns like public safety, navigation, and so on. If you can speak through one of those lenses and frame it around something the city cares about, that’s where your introduction is.

Gathering Local Support

There are three main ways to do this:

1. Social Media. Social media is effective for getting people aware that something exists, but it’s hit or miss for getting your message across. People pretty much have to already be interested in the cause. Social media is also susceptible to trolls and naysayers. If you’re going to use it, focus on safety and nostalgia, community identity, and safety. Use a relatable story. For example, talk about seeing the glaring, out-of-character lights in a nearby city and connecting with people who say, “Yeah, I don’t want those lights in my neighborhood.”

2. In-Person Canvassing. In-person canvassing is the most effective way to get the word out, but it’s also the most intensive. First, check for permits. Many towns require permits for door-to-door canvassing. Also, let police dispatch know which areas you’ll be in and what you’re doing, so that if someone calls, they can say, “Oh, that’s just Brad with DarkSky, he’s harmless.” Always have something people can sign, or create an automated email they can send to a city representative with a QR code. Keep it kind, and adhere to property rules. If you see a “No Trespassing” sign, leave them alone.

3. Canvassing at Events. This could be sporting events, school plays, or community gatherings like nature center events. You can canvas, educate people, and have some kind of action for them to take, whether it’s a signature or an automated email via QR code. That’s something you can take to a city to show community interest.

Finding Your Contacts

Contacts at your government are not equal. There are different tiers of usefulness.

S Tier. If you can get these people on your side, you’re golden:

• City planner
• City engineers
• Zoning teams
• City manager

These are the decision-makers for what we’re talking about. City planner and zoning often go hand in hand.

A Tier. Great contacts, but not directly making zoning rules:

• City council (can be bumped to S tier if someone is a go-getter who will actively champion the cause because ultimately, they’re the ones who write the law)
• City clerk (they write agendas and help draft the bill you’re looking to pass)
• Director of Public Works (will likely forward you to an engineer, but good to know)
• Director of Economic Development

B Tier. Okay contacts; they’ll pass you on to someone else:

• Code enforcement
• Building inspectors

They know who to talk to and will likely direct you to an engineer or city planner.

C Tier. Mediocre contacts; “I know someone who knows someone”:

• Police officers
• Fire leadership

They have no decision-making power on zoning, but they know people who do.

D Tier. Poor contacts; they’ll have no idea:

• Anyone in tax or finance. These are completely different departments with no say over zoning.

That said, anyone in the city can help you find someone in S or A tier. A tax clerk friend can still give you a name or an “in” to the right person.

Submitting Something Actionable

This is the most important step. It’s great to go talk to people, but if you have nothing actionable, nothing’s going to get done. Despite the myth, city workers are extraordinarily busy. They don’t have time to write the bill for you. It’s up to you to write a plan for their approval.

What to include:

• The proposed ordinance. The DarkSky headquarters website provides example write-ups you can use and edit as needed.
• A summary of the ordinance. Include the five W’s: who, what, where, when, why, and how. For example: “I’m asking you to pass an updated lighting ordinance to match dark sky and IES principles. I’m looking to get this passed in the next three months. Enforcement will include…”
• Plans for enforcement and compliance. Most codes depend on a reporting system: citizens reporting violations. But if you can offer additional enforcement support, such as volunteers trained to do nighttime lighting inspections on new construction, providing reports to the city saying whether a site is in compliance or not, that takes something off the city’s plate and is very well received.
• Format matching. Make sure the ordinance is formatted the same way as the rest of the community’s laws. Work with a clerk or look up existing local laws to match the format.

Holding the Government Accountable

Accountability is a team effort and requires team spirit. Here’s what it looks like:

• Offer to review lighting plans. Offer photometric analysis as a free service. Trained local volunteers can review plans and give a thumbs up or flag issues.
• Offer nighttime lighting inspections and inventory. This saves the city manpower.
• Empower the city through education and support, not by bullying or threatening.

What accountability is not:

• Going in demanding immediate action.
• Threatening legal action right away. Don’t go from zero to 100.
• Being difficult to work with. You don’t want to become “that person” at city hall, because then nothing gets done.

Instead, bring treats, offer to help with whatever is needed. That is far better received and actually allows you to hold the city accountable to standards over time while taking a load off their back.

Q&A

Attendee from Wayne Township: I was part of rewriting the ordinances for our village about two years ago when I was on the village council. They’re pretty much in line with what we’re trying to achieve. There is a formal complaint process through the village solicitor. The Ohio Revised Code is quite specific on illumination, shielding of residential, commercial, and industrial lighting. When businesses wanted to come in, the council held them to the code. We also have a board of zoning and an appeals process. I’m not sure where DarkSky Ohio fits in for Wayne Township.

Brad: I would have to see the code specifically, but generally, a dark sky revision in your case, since you already have full shielding requirements, which is one of the major things we pus, would probably focus on a few additional recommendations:

• Offering services: On new construction, we’d offer to handle photometric measurements as community service. The zoning administrator sends us the plan, we schedule a nighttime reading, and we report back on whether it’s within spec, leaving the final decision to the city.
• Color temperature: We recommend 2,700 Kelvin. Headquarters say 3,000 is acceptable. Street lights generally bottom out around 3,000, but we’d recommend 3,000 for street lights and 2,700 Kelvin for all other external lighting.
• Lighting zones: These would match your village’s existing zoning. For example, in a suburban residential zone, street lights would be on motion-sensing dimming, businesses would be required to turn lights off at 10 p.m. or closing, parking lot lights off with motion sensing allowed. In a commercial zone with car dealerships, you’d require motion-sensing dimming, perhaps dimming by 80–90%.
• Safety exceptions: We carve out areas that are curfew-exempt, including front doors, addresses, stairways, unlevel terrain, busy intersections, crosswalks. We want people to be safe and EMS to be able to find places. That safety exception helps reduce resistance significantly.

Attendee: Most of Wayne Township is residential growth with just some restaurants, gas stations, and storage units.

Brad: That’s exactly what the approach would look like. And if you end up going that route, you’ll be working with me on it.

Traci: I want to add that when talking to local government, it’s really important to share personal stories. When I helped pass a basic light ordinance in Clark County, what really helped were stories about why it’s important to you, pictures showing how it affects you personally and your family. We had to go through various commissions, and I brought my kids. It made a real difference. Saying “this is for them” and connecting the sky they grew up with to what it looks like now really resonated with council members, depending on their age. Making it personal matters. Brad covered the technical side, but personal stories and pictures really do help because most people don’t show up to these meetings. If you can bring even a handful of people, it’s impactful.

Brad: Absolutely. And when people do show up to meetings, it’s generally not to say what a great job the city is doing. So having something positive, especially cheering when a vote goes through, is a huge deal. City and village council members genuinely smile when they get positive feedback. Most feedback they get is not positive.

Sarah mentioned in chat that Springboro is updating their street lights to LED. We actually worked closely with Springboro on a presentation for zoning professionals in Southwest Ohio. Yes, they are moving to LED, as everyone unfortunately will. But Springboro has a strict lighting code and they’re doing really well. They need to lower their color temperature from 4,000 to 3,000, but they have brightness limits, curfews, and limits on light spillover. For those of you near Springboro, that’s a good example of a city actively working on this right now. There’s a lot of inertia in cities. No one wants to move first. But being able to show that Springboro is doing it, and that Fairborn is very close to adopting, helps a lot. It is unfortunate that we’re moving to LED, but it’s not all doom and gloom.