Costa Mesa, CA Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

Chapter VII of Title 13, the city's landscaping standards, treats trees in required landscaped areas as protected features rather than optional decoration. Section 13-108(c) states plainly that trees shall not be destroyed or removed without prior city approval. An owner who wants a tree gone must file a site plan identifying every existing and proposed replacement tree with the planning division, along with a written request explaining why removal is justified. The planning division can require a report from a California-licensed arborist before deciding, and where feasible it directs that any replacement tree be sized to match the one taken out; new trees only go in once the division has approved the replacement plan.

The same chapter also bars topping or heading back as a pruning method under section 13-108(b), because it ruins a tree's natural shape and produces weak regrowth prone to breaking, and it makes the property owner responsible for replacing any dead, dying, or diseased tree within 60 days of written notice from development services or public services under section 13-108(a). Section 13-106 separately sets the baseline planting ratio that removal and replacement plans must satisfy: one 15-gallon or larger tree for every 200 square feet of landscaped area (300 square feet for auto dealerships), with at least half evergreen and a quarter in 24-inch boxes or larger.

Violating any part of section 13-108, including an unapproved removal, is enforceable under the citywide general penalty at section 1-33 irrespective of the negligence or intent of the violator, meaning even an accidental or contractor-caused removal exposes the property owner to citation.