Gulfport, FL Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

05(a) makes it unlawful to remove any tree with one or more stems six inches or more DBH, or to remove, alter or trim any mangrove, without first obtaining a permit. Red, black and white mangrove and buttonwood are singled out in subsection (b) as having special ecological value regardless of size, and no mangrove may be touched without both a city tree removal permit and any permit required by another agency with jurisdiction; mangroves are exempt from the survey requirement but must be identified by name and clump location.

Subsection (c) makes clear there is no fee for this permit. 06 requires the application to go to the community development department, with a sketch showing trees to be removed for residential lots that have had a dwelling for at least six months, or a full site plan showing every tree six inches or more DBH, planned roadways, utility easements and grade changes for other properties, filed alongside the building permit application. 07 lists the grounds on which a permit may be granted: the tree is dead, in danger of falling, crowded out, endangering a structure or utility, or causing unsafe vision clearance, or the tree cannot reasonably be worked around in the site's development and cannot be relocated, or the species is on the article's undesirable list (Australian pine, Brazilian pepper, carrotwood, Chinaberry, Chinese tallow, ficus and others). 04.