Westfield, IN Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

The code does not run a general private-property tree-removal permit system; the trees-and-shrubs article instead assigns removal duty by location. Section 34-64 makes the owner or person in control of real estate adjacent to the area between the street and the sidewalk (or right-of-way line) responsible for maintaining and removing any tree or shrub planted there if removal becomes necessary. If, after the city gives notice, the owner fails to remove a dead tree or shrub or any dead or dangerous limbs, the city may do the removal itself and collect the cost from the owner.

Separately, section 34-65 authorizes forced removal on sightline grounds: if a tree or shrub, in the opinion of the city council, creates a hazardous obstruction to vision that endangers vehicular or pedestrian traffic, it must be trimmed or removed regardless of its condition. Section 34-66 adds that a tree causing damage to a street, curb, or sidewalk must be removed and the damage repaired by the property owner. Removal duties for trees within city parks or otherwise owned by the city itself run through the separate public-trees article (sections 34-141 to 34-148), which sets its own removal criteria for dead, dying, or hazardous public trees.

Violations of the private-duty provisions in sections 34-64 through 34-68 are enforced as class C infractions under section 34-69, carrying a fine of up to $500.00, with each day of continuing noncompliance a separate offense.