Something I found quite odd...

[Jedi_Master_Bra'tac]

They were trying to save as much energy as possible. So they lowered the shield to only cover the tower, but they left all the lights on in the unshielded part of the city No-one needed those lights....

Is it a nod to everyone who wastes energy by leaving little things like lights on?

[Mattathias2.0]

I thought that was odd as well. But I don't think much of it.

[P-90_177]

actually it looked to me like many many of the lights were off.

[SeaBee]

Perhaps the lighting system was one of the auxilliary systems they couldn't turn off.

Or perhaps the FX people realised that a flying city in space with the lights on looks cooler than one with the lights off.

[padr49904]

mabe by chance they had to use some parts of the city that were right below the tower and it was impossible to turn all the light off that were in that section and some of the section was outside the shield.

[Major Tyler]

The last thing they needed was to get pulled over for not having their lights on.

[Jumper_One]

Or perhaps the FX people realised that a flying city in space with the lights on looks cooler than one with the lights off.

I think that's the answer. plain and simple

[SmallTimePerson]

The last thing they needed was to get pulled over for not having their lights on.

This is definitely the answer...

The only sections I can see with lights on are the inhabited ones.
Also they didn't turn down the shield area, the city automatically did that and Rodney thought it a bad idea to force it not to.

[WingedPegasus]

The last thing they needed was to get pulled over for not having their lights on.

[Mattathias2.0]

We'll leave the light on for ya!

[Vala_M]

This is definitely the answer...

The only sections I can see with lights on are the inhabited ones.
Also they didn't turn down the shield area, the city automatically did that and Rodney thought it a bad idea to force it not to.

No, the city shrunk the shield down just a little bit but later on, McKay recommended to Sheppard to shrink the shield down to just around the tower to be safe.

Vala,

[SmallTimePerson]

No, the city shrunk the shield down just a little bit but later on, McKay recommended to Sheppard to shrink the shield down to just around the tower to be safe.

Vala,

Yeah, I rewatched the episode and you guys are right, the shield went down automatically then mckay lowered it more...

However I still couldn't see any lights on, when mckay went back to destroy the asteroid the tower it was about to hit had no lights.