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    Home » Letter to The Editor: What does Dark Sky mean to you?
    Letter to The Editor

    Letter to The Editor:
    What does Dark Sky mean to you?

    February 10, 20202 Comments
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    By Michael Ryan, Sedona Resident
    (February 10, 2020)

    logo_lettereditorDark sky generally means fantastic night views of stars, planets, moons, constellations, comets, and whatever wanders through our night sky.  It can be breathtaking and great food for the soul.

    To keep our Dark Sky, it takes a community actively promoting and protecting good policies.  The Village of Oak Creek is currently a Certified Dark Sky Community (since 2016). This designation comes from the IDA or the International Dark-Sky Association.  

    To be eligible for Dark Sky status, a community must have a governing institution (in our case Yavapai County) that enacts and enforces policies consistent with the requirements of “Minimum Requirements For All Communities.”  The minimum requirements for certification can be summarized as follows:

    1. Policies or ordinance with key provisions including but not limited to:
      1. Full Shielding on all light sources over 1000 lumens (about 60 watts for old bulbs, Yavapai County rules stipulate restriction on 100 watts or more),
        1. Simple rule on full shielding means the light from the source is directed down to the ground and cannot be seen directly from off your property
        2. No up-lighting allowed.  (Yavapai County allows this after approval, sometimes referred to as architectural lighting) 
      2. Limits on bright white lighting (Less than 3700 kelvins for the techies. Unfortunately, Yavapai has no stipulations on brightness. Sedona’s limit is 4000 Kelvins.)
      3. Lights out on “advertising signs,” or lights not used for safety when a business closes, or 10 pm whichever is later.
      4. A ten-year limit on grandfathered lighting violations (starting 2016 for the Village)
    2. Community commitment to Dark Skies.
    3. Broad support for Dark Skies from a wide range of community organizations such as chambers of commerce, local businesses, etc.
    4. Community commitment to education about Dark Skies requirements.
    5. Success in light pollution control, as demonstrated by construction projects abiding by lighting restrictions that support the goal of dark-sky.
    6. A sky brightness measurement program

    Let’s look at item 5. Success in light pollution control is under direct threat by the Element hotel.  

    The Element has demonstrated a blatant disregard for our County’s lighting regulations. No architect would ever vouch that the lighting scheme on the Element hotel conforms to Yavapai County standards given the use of unshielded Liner LED lighting. 

    The staff at IDA technical staff supports this opinion.  “Any lighting source, regardless of the technology, must be shielded.”  Linear LED’s are a serious violation as these lights can emit up to 1000 lumens per foot and the LED’s are 30 feet or more in length for a whopping 30,000 lumens per segment.  Given there are a total of at least ten segments, this pushes the total lumens, perhaps as high as 300,000 lumens. The Element hotel, with its current lighting, is a travesty to our dark skies.

    The County has the responsibility to review and approve lighting plans for new construction.  In the County Ordinance, there is a section that describes the approval process “Permits and Development Plan reviews.”  Key provisions include:

     

    Sedona Gift Shop

    All applications shall include the following: 

     

    1. A site plan indicating the proposed location of all outdoor lighting fixtures; 
    2. A description of each illuminating device, fixture, lamp, support, and shield. This description may include, but is not limited to, manufacturer’s catalog cuts and drawings (including sections where required), lamp types and lumen outputs; and
    3. Such other information as the Development Services Director may determine is necessary to ensure compliance with this Ordinance.

     

    If the Development Services Director determines that the proposed lighting does not comply with this Ordinance, the permit shall not be issued, or the plan approved.

     

    Note ordinance does not say the County can grant a variance.  That would be like someone having a variance for a stop sign allowing them to run any stop sign they want.  The ordinance is beneficial to our community and our business climate. Residents and businesses should abide by the variance, and the county must enforce the variance.

    We have no choice but to demand the Element remove or disable all of the linear LED lightings or risk our Dark Sky designation and witness our skies disappear as more and more properties disregard the County Ordinance.

    2 Comments

    1. Michael Schroeder on February 17, 2020 11:07 am

      I am surprised that the Village of Oak Creek got a designation as a Dark Sky Community, but then the IDSA apparently has little to do with real dark skies. In fact, I am not sure what they do other than maybe collect dues and hand out plaques. Not sure who funds them.

      I am in a dark corridor on the N side of Cathedral and south of Airport Mesa. The only thing dark is about 30 degrees up from the horizon to the south (Village) and to the north (Sedona). The east is dark to the horizon, mostly, but then were looking at the Mogollon rim. Towards Cottonwood or Uptown Sedona, well, pretty much forget that.

      I will say that the time exposures I have taken toward the Village when the Milky Way is sitting on Cathedral are pretty cool, and the GLOW from the Village of Oak Creek silhouettes Cathedral makes for a great photo.

      I do appreciate the comments regarding the new hotel or any other structures that throw light into the air. Not only are fixtures a problem, but the color temperature of the light is the REAL problem. Just like the street lights in Sedona along 89A and the other up-lighting in Sedona, the bounce of cool light colors, a strong or moderate blue component, creates a glow in the night air.

      It is not the fixture as much as the TYPE of light. There are two GOOD light color installations in Sedona that provide safety, security and little to no bounce. Sedona Rouge parking lot and the new CVS lot. Congratulations to both of those installations.

      The rest is a joke. I think most of the residents in the Village and Sedona would appreciate light control, but you are not going to get it from IDSA.

    2. Mike Johnson on February 18, 2020 9:18 am

      The gym over Corner Table on highway 179 in VOC has too many lights on for years and whoever had the 2nd floor space before them. When you come in from Flagstaff at night you can see it. Lisa Dahl’s rest. also always has too many exterior lights celebrating the season (Valentines Day) and promoting (attention to) her business long after the holiday
      Mike Johnson
      Sedona


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