Medina, OH Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)
Key Facts
- Clearance over street
- 13 feet minimum
- Clearance over right-of-way
- 8 feet minimum
- Duty holder
- Owner or occupant of the land
- Enforcement officials
- City Forester and Service Director
- Abatement notice period
- 10 days by registered mail
- City abatement surcharge
- 15% added to cost billed to owner
Summary
Medina Codified Ordinances § 907.02(f) makes it every landowner's duty to trim private trees that hang over or into the public right-of-way. Foliage must be cleared to thirteen feet above the street surface and to eight feet above the right-of-way surface, and the City Forester enforces the standard.
It is the duty of all persons owning or occupying any land within the City to keep their private trees, which extend over or into any public right-of-way, trimmed so as to remove any foliage encroaching into space above a street to a height of thirteen feet (13') from the surface of the street; and to a height of eight feet (8') above the surface of the right-of-way area.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2025-01: Local legislation current through June 24, 2025 | State legislation current through December 31, 2024).
Full Breakdown
02(f) applies to 'all persons owning or occupying any land within the City' whose private trees extend over or into a public right-of-way; they must trim encroaching foliage to a height of thirteen feet above the street surface and eight feet above the right-of-way surface generally, which covers the tree lawn and sidewalk strip. 06(d) sets the same 13-foot street and 8-foot right-of-way clearances for woody perennials and adds that non-woody plants need only a one-foot clearance from the sidewalk edge and a maximum height of three feet; violating either is declared a public nuisance.
02(c) reserves work on public street trees to the City Forester or someone the Forester authorizes. 07 abatement process: the Service Director or City Forester sends a ten-day written notice by registered mail, and if the owner does not comply, the City performs the trimming and bills the owner for its labor and equipment cost plus a fifteen percent surcharge, or a hired contractor's cost plus the same surcharge; an unpaid bill after thirty days is certified to the Medina County Auditor for collection on the tax duplicate. 99 additionally allows a fine of up to $100, with each day of violation a separate offense. Ord. 50-04, passed 4-12-04, governs.
Violations & Fines
Letting a private tree's branches hang below thirteen feet over the street or eight feet over the right-of-way is declared a public nuisance under § 907.06(d), triggering the § 907.07 abatement process: a ten-day notice by registered mail, then City-performed trimming billed to the owner plus a fifteen percent surcharge, collectible through the county tax duplicate if unpaid. Section 907.99 also allows a fine of up to $100.
Frequently Asked Questions
How high must I trim tree branches over the sidewalk or street in Medina?
What happens if I do not trim an encroaching tree?
Can I trim the street tree in front of my house myself?
Sources & Official References
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