Charlottesville, VA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Development Code Sec. 5, Streetscape Standards, requires every new or substantially rebuilt street to include a greenscape zone, the planted strip between the public right-of-way and the sidewalk's clear walk zone, sized to the minimum width set for the street's classification on the Street Typology Map. 9's landscaping and tree planting standards, the City's Master Tree List, and its Best Management Practices for Tree Preservation, Transplanting, Removal, and Replacement Manual. Large trees must be spaced every 30 feet on-center on average, though spacing can shift for driveways or utility conflicts as long as no large tree sits closer than 20 feet to its neighbor.

Where a tree must go under an overhead utility line, the code substitutes small or medium trees planted every 15 feet on-center on average, with a 10-foot minimum separation. The minimum tree count for a given street frontage is set mathematically: divide the length of the street lot line by the required tree spacing. The Administrator can approve public transit shelters, benches, waste receptacles, bike racks, mailboxes, utility fixtures, lighting and stormwater planters within the greenscape zone, but the zone must still be designed to preserve existing trees to the greatest extent feasible, and existing streetscapes in good condition can substitute for the new-construction standard on the Administrator's determination.