Scranton, PA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Section 434-1, in Chapter 434's general provisions, prohibits any person from permitting or allowing shade trees, hedges or shrubs to become so overgrown that they interfere with passage along sidewalks or streets, or impede safe vision of oncoming traffic at or near intersections. The Tree Ordinance in Article II adds specific clearance powers: § 434-5A(8) gives the City the right to prune or order the pruning of any tree that interferes with the proper spread of light from a streetlight, blocks visibility of a traffic control device, or is a hazard to pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

Section 434-5A(3) separately bars 'topping,' defined as severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than five inches in diameter within the tree's top, as a normal trimming practice, except for storm- or disease-damaged trees or trees under utility wires where other pruning is impractical, at the Shade Tree Commission or City Forester's discretion. Section 434-5A(11) places responsibility for removing leaves, twigs or branches from sidewalks on the property owner in front of whose property they fall. Article I, where § 434-1 sits, carries no dedicated fine schedule of its own, so a citywide general penalty in § 1-16 applies instead of the Article II fine schedule.