Kingsport, TN Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Kingsport Code § 106-26(b) makes planting by property owners on city right-of-way lawful, on one condition: the selection and location of the trees must not interfere with public safety or with the use of the right-of-way by the city or the public. Section 106-26(e) then sets two hard distances for any street tree. No street tree can be planted closer than ten linear feet to any fire hydrant. No street tree can be planted closer than 20 feet in a radius to any overhead electrical, telephone or other utility wires, measured from the base of the trunk to the vertical plane created by the nearest wire. The only way around the 20-foot rule is specific approval by the landscape specialist of a low growth variety suitable for the location.

The definitions in Article II of Chapter 106 explain the vocabulary. Street trees are trees, shrubs, bushes and all other woody vegetation on real property lying within any city right-of-way on either side of any public street. A tree is a woody plant with a single trunk or multiple trunks capable of growing to a height of 15 feet or more.

The area between sidewalks matters for planting. Under section 106-26(f), the dedicated right-of-way lying between the outer edges of sidewalks, or between outer pavement edges when no sidewalk is present, is subject to the same regulations as section 106-25, which covers trees on property the city owns in fee. There, section 106-25(b) lets adjacent owners plant, and any tree planted that way becomes the property of the city.

For public trees, section 106-27(b) sets the planting permit. The application has to state the number of trees or shrubs, the location, grade, species, cultivar or variety of each, and the planting method. A planting plan must be submitted to the landscape specialist for approval if 15 or more trees or shrubs are to be planted. A tree or shrub planted in conflict with the section is subject to removal at the sole expense of the person who planted it, and a permit can be denied for an incomplete application or a conflict with public safety.