Bethlehem, PA Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

Tree removal in Bethlehem is regulated primarily through Article 910 of the Codified Ordinances of the City of Bethlehem (Trees), administered by the Bureau of Urban Forestry within the Department of Public Works under the City Forester. Article 910.04(a) prohibits any person from removing, cutting, pruning, or otherwise disturbing any tree in a 'public area' — defined at 910.01(b) as parks, streets, and the planting strip between street and property line — without a permit from the Director of Public Works. Article 910.05(b) sets a $25 non-refundable permit application fee. Article 910.04(b) authorizes the Director, on the recommendation of the City Forester, to require replacement trees as a condition of any removal permit, with replacement trees a minimum 2-inch caliper, single-stemmed, and planted within six months. Routine removal of a dead, diseased, or hazardous tree wholly on private property outside the public right-of-way is not subject to Article 910's permit requirement, though property owners remain responsible under 910.11 for trees within the ROW abutting their lot. Land-development projects on private property may trigger separate review under Bethlehem's Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance and Zoning Ordinance, including tree-inventory and replacement-plan conditions reviewed by the Bureau of Urban Forestry. Earth disturbance over 5,000 square feet additionally triggers PA DEP NPDES Construction General Permit requirements under 25 Pa. Code Chapter 102 coordinated with the Lehigh or Northampton County Conservation District.