Fountain Valley, CA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)
Key Facts
- Who must trim
- Owner or controller of property abutting a public street
- What is barred
- Encroaching plantings or overhanging branches that impede traffic, drainage or maintenance
- City order
- Written order to trim or remove hazardous plantings
- Public tree work
- Prior permission from director of public works, valid 30 days
- Appeal path
- City manager within 20 days, then city council
- Penalty basis
- § 1.16.010: misdemeanor up to $1,000 or six months
Summary
In the City of Fountain Valley, California, owners of property abutting a public street must keep hedges, trees, shrubs and plants from encroaching on the sidewalk, curb or street and from overhanging in a way that impedes traffic, drainage or maintenance. The city can order hazardous plantings trimmed or removed.
No person owning or controlling property abutting upon any public street or public place in the city, upon which are located hedges, trees, shrubs or plants, shall permit the plantings to encroach upon the sidewalk, curb or street or the branches thereof to overhang the sidewalk, curb or street in such a manner as to impede or interfere with vehicular or pedestrian traffic, drainage flow, or maintenance thereof, or to create a hazardous condition, and he shall keep the plantings trimmed as the public convenience shall require. If any such hedge, tree, shrub or plant is hazardous to the traveling public or impedes the progress or the vision of the public on any such street or public place, or the maintenance thereof, the city may order the same or such part or parts thereof as are hazardous or impair or impede normal use, to be trimmed or removed so as to remedy such condition.
Full Breakdown
Fountain Valley Municipal Code § 12.04.100 puts the trimming duty on the person owning or controlling property that abuts a public street or public place. Hedges, trees, shrubs and plants cannot encroach on the sidewalk, curb or street, and branches cannot overhang them in a way that impedes or interferes with vehicular or pedestrian traffic, drainage flow or maintenance, or creates a hazardous condition. The owner must keep the plantings trimmed as the public convenience requires.
The city can act on its own. If a hedge, tree, shrub or plant is hazardous to the traveling public or impedes the progress or vision of the public on a street or public place, the city can order the hazardous part trimmed or removed. The order is given in writing to the owner, occupant or agent of the property, and the section ties a ten-day period after that notice to treating the condition as a public nuisance that can be abated.
Trees that stand in the street, parkway or other public place are a different matter. Under § 12.04.040 no one can cut, trim, prune or remove them without prior permission from the director of public works, and that permission lasts no more than thirty days from issuance. Abutting owners who want a public tree trimmed can file a written request under § 12.04.050, and the director can require a written agreement to pay the cost and do the work as stipulated before issuing the permit. Section 12.04.020 keeps the pruning and trimming of these trees under the authority of the director of public works, subject to the city council.
Decisions can be appealed in writing to the city manager within twenty days after mailing of the director's written notice (§ 12.04.110). The city manager's decision can then be appealed to the city council within twenty days, and the council's determination is final (§ 12.04.120).
Violations & Fines
Chapter 12.04 has no penalty section of its own, so § 1.16.010 supplies the consequence: a violation of any code provision is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000, up to six months in County Jail, or both, and the prosecutor can charge it as an infraction with fines of $100, $200 and $500 for a first, second and further violation within one year. Each day is a separate offense, and the condition is a public nuisance the city can abate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who trims tree branches over a Fountain Valley sidewalk?
Can I trim the tree in the parkway in front of my house?
How do I challenge a public works tree decision?
What if I ignore a city order to trim a hedge?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fountain Valley
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