Argyle's New Dark-Sky Rules Have a Holiday Lights Clause. Here's What It Says.
"Holiday lighting illuminated for no more than 60 days per calendar year, with illumination only during the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. each day." That sentence sits near the end of a 13-page ordinance that Argyle's Town Council approved this spring, and it decides how the town treats the lights going up on rooflines this season.
The clause gives holiday displays a pass from rules that cover nearly every other outdoor light in town. That pass has conditions. They amount to a schedule, and the 11 p.m. part matters most for a typical December evening.
On April 20, 2026, council approved Ordinance 2026-19. It replaced the old lighting-and-glare section of the Town Development Standards with a new Article VIII, Outdoor Lighting. The council minutes from that meeting record one change made in the motion: outdoor sports facilities must also follow the light-trespass provision.
The ordinance is part of a bigger effort. In his September column for the Cross Timbers Gazette, Mayor Ron Schmidt wrote that Argyle "is in the process of being certified as a Dark Sky Community." He said Community Development Director Harrison Wicks has led the work, and that the goal is "to reduce unnecessary light pollution and light trespass while preserving the night sky and the rural character that makes Argyle 'Argyle.'" DarkSky International awards that designation, and Texas already has examples. Dripping Springs was named a Dark Sky Community in 2014.
The town keeps a landing page for the effort, Argyle Dark Sky: Outdoor Lighting Standards. The adopted ordinance itself is the document that carries the actual wording.
The holiday clause only makes sense next to the general rules it's an exception to. Under Article VIII:
A 2,200K limit is warm, amber-leaning light. Without the holiday exemption, decorative strands along a roofline would be held to the same shielding and color-temperature standards as a floodlight on a wall.
Section 14.8.6 lists what "this article shall not apply to." Holiday lighting is first on the list, and the exemption comes with three terms:
Look at the second condition next to the curfew section above. The ordinance sets no general curfew for a home's porch light or garage fixtures. It encourages residents to turn lights off and leaves it there. Holiday lighting is exempt only when it's lit within the 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. window. So a strand of decorations comes with a stated cutoff, and the permanent coach lights on the same house don't.
Patio and pergola lights are covered by their own exemption, the next item on the same list. It isn't about dates. It's about how much light the strands put out.
| Lighting type | Time limit in the exemption | Output or color limits in the exemption |
|---|---|---|
| Holiday lighting | 60 days per calendar year, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily | None listed; flashing barred on nonresidential properties |
| String, festoon, bistro and similar | None listed | 50 lumens max per lamp, 6,000 lumens max per property, rated at or below 2200K |
| Other outdoor lighting | Curfew rules apply in nonresidential zones and to public lighting | Fully shielded, 2200K max |
Café lights strung over a back patio all year fall under the string-light item, so the per-lamp and per-property lumen caps and the 2200K rating are the numbers that apply to them.
The holiday clause covers decorations. Permanent fixtures are handled in a separate section. Outdoor lighting that was legally installed before the ordinance and doesn't meet the new standards is considered nonconforming and "is allowed to remain until required to be replaced pursuant to the terms of this article." The broader deadline is ten years from adoption for nonconforming outdoor lighting. New construction and new luminaires, "including replacements for existing fixtures," must comply from adoption on.
Additions and remodels are covered too. A residential project doesn't end a property's nonconforming status. Outdoor lighting attached to a construction project that requires a building permit does have to meet the standards. Residential owners can also ask the town for a per-fixture amortization extension of up to ten years from installation. The listed conditions are that the fixture originally cost at least $100, that it can't be brought into compliance by changing the bulb or adding shielding, and that any replacement bulbs during the extension are rated 2200K or lower.
This is general information, not legal advice. The ordinance text is the controlling document, and the Town of Argyle can answer questions about how it applies to a specific property.
Argyle's community holiday calendar this year runs on fixed dates and hours.
Saturday, Nov. 7, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The 2026 Argyle Holiday Market is listed at the Argyle Middle School 377 campus, with proceeds benefiting Argyle High School Project Graduation.
Saturday, Nov. 7, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The same evening, the University of North Texas's Rafes Urban Astronomy Center in Denton lists its next public star party. The center's page describes star parties on the first and third Saturdays. It's the nearest public telescope night to see the kind of sky the town says it is trying to protect.
Saturday, Dec. 5, 4 to 6 p.m. Keep Argyle Beautiful's 2026 Annual Argyle Christmas Tree Lighting Festival moves to a new host, The Well Community Church at 600 FM 407. Music, refreshments, crafts and activities run from 4 to 5:45 p.m. Then the tree is lit, followed by a community carol by candlelight. Santa Claus arrives by firetruck with Mrs. Claus and the elves. New this year are oversized Christmas cards for first responders, painted by an Argyle student artist. Bring shelf-stable food for the Argyle Food Bank. If the weather turns, the festival moves inside the church.
The dark-sky approach shows up in the parks, too. Unity Park, at the southwest corner of Hwy 377 and Crawford Road, is where the town hopes to work with Master Gardeners and Master Naturalists to protect pollinator habitat. According to the Cross Timbers Gazette's report on the first Parks Board meeting, plans there include better lighting "within the town's lighting standards." The town's June notes recorded Unity Park's recognition as a Monarch Waystation, along with two new benches overlooking the Master Gardeners' work.
If you're planning a remodel or a new build in Argyle, the exterior fixtures you pick now fall under Article VIII: fully shielded, 2200K or warmer, and required on any work that needs a building permit. Trisha Atwood works on design and construction alongside home sales, and would be glad to look at a lighting plan with you that suits both the house and the town's night sky. Let's Connect.
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