Scranton, PA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Scranton's tree-trimming framework is set out in Chapter 434, Article I (Trees) of the City Code (https://ecode360.com/11608793), known as the 'Tree Ordinance of the City of Scranton, County of Lackawanna, State of Pennsylvania.' By its own terms the ordinance applies to street, highway, lane, alley or avenue trees solely within the right-of-way of such streets, highways, lanes, and avenues within the City of Scranton, and to trees on public parks and all other grounds for which the City of Scranton has record ownership. It is administered by the Scranton Shade Tree Commission established under Chapter 358 (https://ecode360.com/11603607), which consists of five members appointed by the Mayor with City Council consent for five-year terms. The Commission meets four times a year at the discretion of the City Forester (Tony Santoli, per current City records). The ordinance prohibits 'topping' - defined as 'the severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than five inches in diameter within the tree's top to such a degree so as to remove the normal canopy and disfigure the tree' - as a normal practice; storm-damaged or diseased trees and certain trees under utility wires may be exempted at the determination of the Shade Tree Commission or City Forester. It is unlawful to permit shade trees, hedges, or shrubs to become so overgrown as to interfere with passage along sidewalks or streets or to impede safe vision at intersections; the Commission or City Forester may order corrective trimming. Trimming of a wholly private tree on a residential lot outside the right-of-way generally does not require a Shade Tree Commission permit. Utility-line clearance pruning by PPL Electric Utilities and other regulated utilities is performed under the Pennsylvania Public Utility Code (66 Pa.C.S.) and recorded easement rights. Under Pennsylvania common law (Jones v. Wagner, 624 A.2d 166), an adjoining landowner may trim a neighbor's overhanging branches to the property line but is liable for damage that kills or weakens the tree. Scranton is recognized as a Tree City USA community by the Arbor Day Foundation; in 2024 the City received a $30,000 award from TreePennsylvania's Environmental Justice Forests program to plant 250 bare-root trees.