North Las Vegas, NV Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)
Tree removal permit rules in North Las Vegas, NV, sometimes called heritage tree, protected tree, or street tree ordinances, list which trees require a permit before you can cut them down.
Key Facts
- Permission required
- Municipal Forester/Director sign-off before removal
- City removal grounds
- Dead, diseased, hazardous, or infrastructure damage
- Healthy-tree protection
- No removal for leaf/seed-litter complaints
- Damage liability
- Pay City's actual removal/mitigation costs
- Emergency track
- Police/Fire/Director can order immediate removal
- Replacement policy
- No Net Loss of Canopy Coverage, § 12.15.130
Summary
Removing or replacing a tree on a North Las Vegas public street or right-of-way requires permission from the Municipal Forester or Parks and Recreation Director first, under Section 12.15.110. The City itself can take down a City tree that's dead, diseased, hazardous or an emergency risk under Section 12.15.100, but won't remove a healthy tree just because of leaf or seed litter.
The Municipal Forester or Director or their designee has the authority to remove a tree if the tree is dead, diseased, hazardous, or an emergency condition exists which is a threat to public safety. ... No healthy City tree will be removed in response to complaints about leaves, pine cones, pine needles, fruit, or seed debris or other perceived annoyance affecting non-City property adjacent to the City tree. ... No person shall remove or replace any tree in the City in or upon any public street or right-of-way without having first obtained permission from the Municipal Forester or Director or designee, as required by this chapter. An individual who causes damage to a City tree due to the individual's intentional or negligent act shall pay the City the actual costs to the City related to the removal, replacement, or mitigation of the damaged City tree.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 146 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
100 gives the Municipal Forester, the Parks and Recreation Director, or their designee authority to remove a City tree that is dead, diseased, hazardous, or presents an emergency threat to public safety, and also allows removal of a tree causing chronic and persistent damage to curbs, gutters, sidewalks or other hardscape so infrastructure repairs can proceed. The section draws a hard line against removing a healthy tree merely because a neighboring property owner complains about leaves, pine cones, pine needles, fruit or seed debris. 110 requires prior written permission from the Municipal Forester, Director or designee: unauthorized removal is not an option.
That section also makes intentional or negligent damage to a City tree a cost-recovery event: the responsible individual must pay the City's actual costs of removing, replacing or otherwise mitigating the damaged tree. 120 carves out a narrower emergency track: when a City tree is hazardous or dangerous and poses an immediate threat to person or property, the Director, Municipal Forester, or any Police or Fire Department member may authorize its removal on the spot, bypassing the standard permission process. 130, which calls for replacing removed trees as close as possible to the original location, ideally within the same ward.
Violations & Fines
Removing or replacing a public-street or right-of-way tree without prior permission from the Municipal Forester, Director or designee violates Section 12.15.110, and anyone who intentionally or negligently damages a City tree owes the City its actual removal, replacement and mitigation costs. Because Chapter 12.15 sets no separate fine, unauthorized removal also falls under the Code's general penalty, Section 1.12.010, as a misdemeanor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I remove a tree in front of my house that's in the public right-of-way?
Will the City remove a healthy tree because it drops too many leaves or seeds?
What if I damage a City tree by accident during a project?
What happens in a true emergency, like a tree about to fall on someone?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in North Las Vegas
Compare North Las Vegas to another location·View the Nevada landscaping rules overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.
Tree Removal & Heritage Trees in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Clark County handle tree removal & heritage trees.