Marietta, GA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Section 5-4-090 protects "shade trees," defined as any tree with a trunk at least two inches in diameter measured six inches above ground level, that normally reaches ten feet at maturity, and that normally has one main trunk with many branches. The section bars destroying, injuring or removing such a tree on the right-of-way of any street, alley or sidewalk, or on the public square, a city park, a school yard, or other city property, with a narrow carve-out for city personnel acting under department rules.

For everyone else, subsection D requires a permit issued by the office of the city manager before any shade tree covered by the section can be destroyed, injured or removed, and the permit can be granted only on one of four specific grounds: the tree is diseased or injured beyond restoration; it is in danger of falling; it clearly interferes with utility services; or it creates unsafe visual clearance on a street or sidewalk. That last ground is the operative rule for a property owner or contractor who wants to cut back a shade tree that is blocking sightlines or overhanging a walkway to the point of creating a hazard: removal or injury of the tree (as opposed to routine pruning that does not injure the protected tree) still requires the city manager's permit, and the applicant must show the visual-clearance problem to obtain it. Chapter 5-4 sets no separate fine for this section, so enforcement runs through the Code's general penalty provision.