Dublin, CA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Dublin manages roughly 14,000 city-maintained street trees, but trees on private property and adjacent planter strips are the property owner's responsibility (DMC 7.56.030(A)). Owners must maintain right-of-way clearance of eight (8) feet above sidewalks and sixteen (16) feet above streets on the street side of the tree at all times, and may not let any tree obstruct sight lines to intersections, signs, or traffic-control devices. For approved city street trees, DMC 7.56.060(A) makes it unlawful to trim them without first obtaining an encroachment permit from the Public Works Department; the permit fee is waived for tree-service contractors. No permit is required for removing sucker growth, waterspouts, low-hanging branches less than two (2) inches in diameter causing obstructions, or removing less than ten percent (10%) of the tree canopy (DMC 7.56.060(C)). The code's general pruning standard advises that no more than twenty-five percent (25%) of a tree's canopy should be removed within a growing season, and "tree topping" is expressly not an approved practice for city or protected trees and is treated as removal. Heritage trees on private property follow separate pruning rules under Chapter 5.60. Report city-tree concerns to Public Works at (925) 833-6630.