Pasadena, CA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Pasadena's parkway is the strip of land between a property line and the curb, or where a curb would ordinarily sit, under Section 8.52.020(R). The city assigns each street or street segment a single approved species through its master street tree plan, a comprehensive planting plan approved by the city council under Section 8.52.020(L); the species listed for a given street becomes that street's official street tree under Section 8.52.020(Q). Section 8.52.085(G) makes it a prohibited act to plant a tree of any other species in a parkway, median or traffic island, and a violator is subject to a civil penalty.

The design commission reviews and recommends amendments to the master street tree plan under Section 8.52.050, while the city manager is responsible for planting, maintaining and inventorying public and street trees, and for recommending plan changes to the city council under Section 8.52.030. Because street trees are public trees under Section 8.52.020(W)-(AA), residents may not choose their own parkway tree species even when they plant and pay for it themselves; coordination with the city's urban forestry staff is needed to confirm which species is designated for the abutting street segment before planting.

Violations of Section 8.52.085, including unauthorized-species parkway plantings, can be pursued through the administrative citation and compliance-order procedures of Chapters 1.25 and 1.26, in addition to the civil penalty specified for this subsection, under Section 8.52.160(C).