Alameda, CA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Street trees in Alameda are managed by the City's Public Works Department, which is responsible for trees and surface roots growing in the public right-of-way. Public Works will trim or remove any City tree or shrub that might affect streets, sidewalks, or sewers; residents request that service through the Public Works Maintenance Division at (510) 747-7900. The City's tree planting and species selections are governed administratively by the 2010 Master Street Tree Plan and the newer Urban Forest Plan, developed with a certified arborist and adopted under the City's Climate Action and Resiliency Plan. Major work on protected trees is restricted: under Alameda Municipal Code Section 13-21.7(c), certain trees are protected and cannot be removed (and significant alteration that effectively removes a tree falls within this) without a Certificate of Approval from the Historical Advisory Board. Protected trees include the palm trees in the public right-of-way on Burbank Street and Portola Avenue, any street tree on Thompson and Central Avenues, and any Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) with a ten-inch or greater diameter measured 4.5 feet above the ground. For routine pruning of an unprotected private tree, no City permit is required, but residents should not prune City-owned street trees themselves.