On May 18th, Maynard’s Town Meeting narrowly approved an outdoor-lighting bylaw by a vote of 135 to 118 with one abstention. It was presented as a citizen’s petition, brought forward by Maynard resident Kathie C. Larsen. You can read the newly-adopted bylaw here (it’s Article 25). It has these key elements:

• applies to new or replacement outdoor lighting; existing lighting is excluded
• includes all residences, businesses, and municipal facilities
• excludes holiday lighting, but which be turned off from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
• the Town Administrator or his/her designee is responsible for enforcement

“The discussion was lively, which is a very polite way of wording what actually happened!!” says Larsen. “There was lots of pushback from homeowners who don’t want the town regulating what they can and can’t do. Lots of false ideas about safety and very little open listening on this topic.”

Larsen had worked hard to develop regulatory language that would provide a solid framework and prove agreeable to those attending Town Meeting. “There were many informed comments from residents, which certainly helped push us over the finish line,” she notes. The Town Meeting discussion and vote on Larsen’s proposal didn’t end until after 11 p.m.

Here in Massachusetts, “citizen petition” articles like Larsen’s are notoriously difficult to pass, because they don’t have the automatic backing of key town committees like the Select Board or Planning Board. Another obstacle is Maynard’s “open” Town Meeting format, during which any registered voter in the town may attend, speak, and vote on any bylaw on the meeting’s warrant.

So getting to a successful outdoor-lighting bylaw vote required an extended effort by Larsen and other backers. To start, they utilized the model bylaw available from DarkSkyMass, then they folded in elements from lighting bylaws recently passed in Nantucket, Beckett, and Chelmsford.

Then the real legwork began. One key ally was Green Maynard, which had provided moral and promotional support, including an online article in The Maynard Voice. DarkSkyMass offered key assistance by holding its 2025 annual meeting in Maynard. Chapter officers James Lowenthal and Kelly Beatty provided three in-person and virtual presentations to townspeople. Lighting professional Glen Heinmiller attended a couple of informational meetings with town officials via zoom — and even attended the very late Town Meeting in person.

With the month’s successful outcome, Maynard becomes the 67th municipality in Massachusetts that has adopted outdoor-lighting regulations. If you have an interest in developing a bylaw or ordinance for your community, contact Tim Brothers (astrobrothers at gmail dot com) or Kelly Beatty (kbeatty at darksky dot org).