Wylie, TX Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

Wylie's Tree Preservation ordinance, Appendix B Section 7.6, requires a Tree Management Plan before most protected trees can come down. Section 7.6.C.1 requires the plan to be submitted to the Director alongside a detailed development plan, site plan, subdivision plat, clearing and grading plan, erosion control plan, or public improvement construction plan; the plan must show every tree of six inches or greater caliper, identify which trees will be removed versus preserved, and show how building pads, drives, parking, and easements will affect them. Section 7.6.D.1 then bars anyone from cutting down, destroying, removing, or otherwise damaging a protected tree without that approved plan, and Section 7.6.D.2 flatly prohibits clear-cutting protected trees before a plan is approved.

Limited exceptions exist without a permit: trees within necessary rights-of-way, easements, or a lot's buildable area may come down before a building permit issues, a hazardous tree endangering public safety may be removed on City Manager authorization, and trees may come down during a declared emergency such as a tornado or flood. During construction, developers must ribbon-mark protected trees within 30 feet of a right-of-way or buildable area and fence off designated parking and material-stockpile zones so equipment and materials stay away from tree canopies and drip lines. Any paving or utility work within a protected tree's drip line must stay at least five feet from the trunk.