Teton County exterior decorative lights must be taken down next week
JACKSON, Wyo. (KIFI) – UPDATE: Teton County would like to issue a correction regarding a media alert that was released on Thursday, January 5, 2023 regarding the County Land Development Regulations (LDRs) on exterior decorative lighting.
In the January 5 press release, the County stated that string lighting on buildings, signage, trees, and/or vegetation must be taken down by Tuesday, January 10; however, lighting only needs to be turned off by Tuesday, January 10.
“We understand that people may not be able to take down lights by January 10 due to snow conditions or other reasons,” said Teton County Planning and Building Services Director Chris Neubecker. “We want to clarify that lights can either be taken down or turned off.”
Furthermore, Wyoming Stargazing did not request to change the dates of November 15 to January 10 as the timeframe for when exterior decorative lighting could be turned on; and they did not ask to amend the LDRs to include “signage, trees, and/or vegetation.” It was recommended by County staff to add “signage, trees, and/or vegetation” to the language, which already included buildings.
The County apologizes to the public for not being more clear on the County exterior decorative lighting rules and regulations, and to Wyoming Stargazing for miscommunicating their efforts to promote dark skies through amendments to the County LDRs. The County also wants to clarify that the regulation on the timeframe for when outdoor string lighting may be used (November 15 to January 10) has been in effect since 1994.
The rules for exterior decorative lighting are on page 241 of the County LDRs, Section 5.3.1 C, which can be found HERE.
ORIGINAL: Teton County is reminding the public all outdoor decorative lighting, including holiday string lighting, must be taken down by Tuesday, Jan. 10 in order to be compliant with County Land Development Regulations (LDRs).
In the past, County LDRs have only allowed string lighting on buildings between Nov. 15 and Jan. 10, but following a recent amendment submitted by Wyoming Stargazing and approved by the Teton County Board of County Commissioners, string lighting restrictions now also include signage, trees and/or vegetation. Additionally, flickering or flashing outdoor lighting is never allowed in Teton County.
The new regulations aim to make outdoor lighting in our community more dark sky friendly for public and wildlife safety, and for stargazing.
The recent amendments make Teton County eligible for an International Dark Sky Community designation by the International Dark Sky Association, which would make Teton County the first County in the world to receive such distinction.
The rules for exterior decorative lighting are on page 241 of the County LDRs, Section 5.3.1 C, which can be found HERE.
