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

Under Tustin City Code Section 7303, no person may 'cut down, girdle, remove, break, injure, deface or destroy any tree or shrub' on a public parkway, median, street, highway, alley, sidewalk or right-of-way 'without prior written approval of the City's Manager of Field Services.' Section 7306 governs City removal of public trees: subsection (a) authorizes the Manager of Field Services to remove trees that 'have been determined to be blighted, diseased or unsafe to the public,' and the City replaces them within a reasonable time with a tree from the City's approved list. Subsection (b) addresses requests by adjacent owners to remove a healthy public tree: such a request is evaluated by the Manager of Field Services, and 'a healthy tree specimen will not be removed unless it has caused damage to adjacent property or is determined to be unsafe.' That is a deliberately high bar, so residents generally cannot have a healthy street tree removed simply for convenience, leaf litter, or view. Decisions may be appealed in writing to the Director of Public Works and ultimately to the City Council (Sec. 7307). Trees located entirely on private property are not subject to Chapter 3 removal controls; Tustin's general code does not impose a private-tree removal permit for ordinary single-family lots, though the Property Maintenance chapter still bars dead and decayed plant material.