Redding, CA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Under Redding Municipal Code Chapter 13.40, it is unlawful to plant, maintain, remove, replace, or in any way injure, deface or destroy any tree, tree stake, tree guard or tree well in a planting strip (the area between the curb and the adjacent property line) or public area without a written permit under Section 13.40.030. That same section bars filling in the ground around a tree with concrete, asphalt, brick or gravel, or pouring deleterious matter around it, if doing so would cut off air, light or water from the roots.

The city's parks foreman plants, inspects and maintains trees in planting strips and public areas under Section 13.40.040, and can remove any tree that becomes a hazard or impediment to public travel, but must first give the adjoining owner at least ten days' written notice and a chance to object to the community services advisory commission, whose ruling is final (no notice is required for a manifest public hazard and immediate necessity). Under Section 13.40.050, the parks foreman may instead let a property owner maintain a parking-strip tree, but only if it is a species listed in the comprehensive tree plan, and all trimming must be done by a licensed tree trimmer or the owner under the foreman's general supervision. Section 13.40.060 lets the foreman permit an owner to remove a healthy, approved-list tree for the owner's own convenience, but the owner then bears the full cost of removal and of replacing it with a plan-conforming tree, capped at $400. Anyone in the business of maintaining or removing city trees must pass an exam given by the parks foreman before getting a business license, and tree-removal businesses must carry public liability and property-damage insurance and may be required to post a performance bond (Section 13.40.070). A hazardous private tree overhanging a street or public area is declared a public nuisance under Section 13.40.080; if the owner does not correct it within ten days of written notice, the parks foreman removes it and assesses the cost to the owner using the state's weed-and-rubbish-abatement procedure.