Cicero, IL Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)
Key Facts
- Duty holder
- Property owner where growth overhangs
- Trigger
- Overhang makes travel unsafe/obstructed
- Notice period
- 10 days before town acts
- Town remedy
- Town removes hazard, bills owner
- Collection method
- Lien on the property until paid
- Exemption
- Government-owned property excluded
Summary
Cicero property owners must trim any tree, weed, or shrub that overhangs a public or private sidewalk, street, stairwell, or driveway and makes travel unsafe under Town Code Sec. 102-1. If the owner ignores a ten-day notice, the town removes the hazard itself and places a lien on the property for the cost.
Sec. 102-1. - Dangerous trees, weeds or shrubs. (a) Any tree, weed or shrub that overhangs any public or private sidewalk, street, stairwell or driveway in the town in such a way as to impede, interfere or make either pedestrian or automobile traffic unsafe, obstructed or hazardous to the public shall be trimmed by the owner of the property on which tree, weed or shrub is creating the unsafe, obstructed or hazardous condition so that it no longer exists. (b) If, after ten days' notice, the owner fails to remove unsafe, obstructing or hazardous trees, weeds or shrubs, the superintendent of public works is authorized to take such steps as are necessary to ensure elimination of the unsafe, obstructing or hazardous condition to the public safety and to bill the property owner for the expense incurred thereby. Any expense incurred by the town for the removal of trees, weeds or shrubs shall be a lien on the property until paid. (c) Any provision to the contrary notwithstanding, this section shall not apply to property owned by any governmental entity.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 121).
Full Breakdown
Sec. ' The section does not set a fixed clearance height in inches or feet; the trigger is functional, whether the growth actually makes travel unsafe, obstructed, or hazardous, which the superintendent of public works applies case by case when a complaint or inspection turns one up. If the owner does not act after being given ten days' notice, subsection (b) authorizes the superintendent of public works to step in, take whatever steps are necessary to eliminate the hazard, and then bill the property owner for the cost the town incurred doing the work the owner should have done.
That expense becomes a lien on the property until it is paid, giving the town a real financial hook rather than just a citation. Subsection (c) carves out one exception: the trimming duty in this section does not apply to property owned by any governmental entity, so a town-owned lot with an overhanging branch is handled through other channels rather than this owner-liability provision.
Violations & Fines
An owner who ignores the ten-day notice to trim a hazardous overhang faces town-ordered removal at the owner's expense under Sec. 102-1(b), with the resulting bill recorded as a lien against the property until paid in full. The section itself does not set a separate criminal fine, so unpaid trimming costs are collected through the lien rather than a court-imposed penalty, though the underlying failure to maintain the property can still expose the owner to the Code's general nuisance-abatement remedies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to trim a tree branch that hangs over the sidewalk in Cicero?
What happens if I don't trim an overhanging tree after the town notifies me?
Does this rule apply to trees on town-owned land?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cicero
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