Linden, NJ Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

City Code § 20-2 defines the 'planting strip' as the part of a street right-of-way between the abutting property line and the curb or traveled portion of the street, excluding any sidewalk, and defines a 'street tree' as a tree planted in the sidewalk, the planting strip, or the public right-of-way adjacent to the traveled roadway, a definition that also reaches trees in islands, medians and pedestrian refuges within the right-of-way. 5 inches or more must replace it under § 20-4's Tree Replacement Requirements Table, with the species type and diversity of replacement stock subject to approval by the Shade Tree Advisory Board or the Director of Community Services.

Replacement trees must go in the ground within twelve months of the original removal (or an alternate date the City sets), be monitored by the applicant for two years to confirm survival, and be replaced again within twelve months if they fail; trees left in temporary containers or pots do not satisfy the requirement. If the Shade Tree Advisory Board determines the removal site itself cannot hold the required replacement trees, including street trees that cannot go back into a planting strip, the applicant must plant them on a separate, City-approved site or pay $500 per required tree into the City's dedicated tree-planting fund instead.

During any nearby construction, § 20-7 requires snow fencing or another protective barrier at least ten feet from the trunk of any tree, street trees included, kept in place until the Enforcement Officer, either the Shade Tree Advisory Board Director or the Community Services Director, authorizes its removal; no equipment, chemicals, soil or construction material may be stored inside that protected zone, and nothing may be attached or wired to the protected tree.