Chicago Bureau of Forestry under MCC 10-32 owns and manages all parkway trees. Residents may not plant on the parkway without permission; approved species come from the Bureau's published list emphasizing salt tolerance, disease resistance, and canopy diversity.
MCC 10-32-100 vests management of every parkway tree in the Chicago Bureau of Forestry. Residents who want a parkway tree request one through 311 or join the Our Roots Chicago initiative; the city plants free of charge. The Bureau's approved species list rotates seasonally and emphasizes Kentucky coffeetree, hackberry, swamp white oak, ginkgo, and London planetree, chosen for road-salt tolerance and resistance to emerald ash borer and Dutch elm disease. Self-planting on the parkway, even with the same species the city would choose, violates MCC 10-32-100 because it disrupts utility-locate records and tree-inventory data. The Bureau requires 5x5-foot pit minimums and prohibits planting within 30 feet of stop signs.
Planting a tree in the parkway without Bureau of Forestry approval violates MCC 10-32-100 and triggers fines of $100 to $500 plus city removal at owner expense. Damaging or unauthorized pruning of a parkway tree adds replacement-cost recovery.
Chicago, IL
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Chicago, IL
Removal of parkway trees (in the public right-of-way) requires authorization from the Bureau of Forestry under MCC 10-32. Private trees on private property d...
Chicago, IL
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See how Chicago's parkway planting rules stack up against other locations.
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