Rock Hill, SC Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Rock Hill's tree-trimming framework distinguishes sharply between private trees and public/right-of-way trees. Routine pruning of a healthy tree wholly on private property does not require a City permit. Trees in the public right-of-way (street trees), in City parks, and on other public property fall under the Rock Hill Public Tree Ordinance administered by the City Forester within Community Forestry (https://www.cityofrockhill.com/departments/utilities/community-forestry) and overseen by the Rock Hill Tree Commission. The Tree Commission, a citizen board appointed by City Council, meets the second Monday of each month at 5 PM at the City Operations Center, 757 South Anderson Road, and serves as the appeals board on operational decisions and Tree Ordinance violations. Any work on a public tree — pruning, trimming, removal — requires coordination with the City Forester. Right-of-way work may additionally require a right-of-way permit from Rock Hill Public Works. Rock Hill has been a Tree City USA since 1987, which requires (under Arbor Day Foundation standards) a tree board, a community tree ordinance, at least $2 per capita in community forestry expenditure, and an annual Arbor Day observance, all administered in South Carolina by the South Carolina Forestry Commission (https://www.scfc.gov/management/urban-forestry/). Utility line-clearance pruning is performed by Duke Energy and partner utilities under their easement rights and 29 C.F.R. 1910.269 worker-safety standards; the City does not control utility line-clearance scheduling on overhead distribution. South Carolina follows the common-law self-help rule: a property owner may trim a neighbor's overhanging branches and intruding roots back to the property line, but cuts that damage or kill the neighbor's tree expose the trimmer to civil liability for the diminished value of the tree.