Sacramento, CA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Sacramento City Code § 17.504.050(I)
- Applies to
- Every interior and corner residential lot in a subdivision
- Species/size/location
- Set by the director of public works
- Who plants
- City forces or a private contractor (parks dept. choice)
- Payment
- Fee set by city council resolution, paid by subdivider
- Design factor
- Solar access to homes considered when siting trees
Summary
Sacramento requires street trees to be planted along every residential lot in a new subdivision as a condition of tentative or parcel map approval. The city's director of public works sets the species, size and planting location, and the subdivider pays a council-set fee rather than planting directly.
I. Provide for the planting of residential street trees of the species, condition, size, and in the location prescribed by the director of public works at an appropriate future date by payment of a fee to the city in the sums established by resolution of the city council for each interior residential lot and for each corner residential lot within the subdivision. Trees shall be planted by city forces, or at the discretion of the director of parks and community services, by private contractors. The director of public works shall give consideration to the provision of solar access, to the extent feasible, to residential dwellings at the time of selecting and planting of street trees;
Full Breakdown
050 lists the improvements a subdivider must provide as conditions of approval of a tentative map or parcel map, and subsection I covers residential street (parkway) trees specifically. " Planting itself is done "by city forces, or at the discretion of the director of parks and community services, by private contractors", so the subdivider does not choose a landscaper. The section also builds in a design consideration: the director of public works "shall give consideration to the provision of solar access, to the extent feasible, to residential dwellings at the time of selecting and planting of street trees," meaning tree placement and species can be adjusted so a new home's south-facing exposure isn't blocked.
852 and accepted by the director of public works and the director of utilities before a final map or parcel map can be accepted. The rule reaches every new residential subdivision inside Sacramento city limits, corner lots and interior lots alike, and was last codified under Ord. 2017-0009 § 12.
Violations & Fines
Section 17.504.050 frames the street-tree fee as one of the enumerated "conditions of approval of a tentative map or a parcel map," and § 17.504.010 requires improvement plans to be completed and accepted by the director of public works and the director of utilities before the final map or parcel map is accepted. Practically, that means the tree-planting fee has to be paid and the improvement plan finalized before the city will accept the final subdivision map: it functions as a map-recordation hold rather than a standalone citation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides what kind of tree goes in front of a new Sacramento home?
Does a subdivider plant the street trees themselves?
Who physically plants Sacramento's parkway street trees?
Is street tree planting optional for a new Sacramento subdivision?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sacramento
California rules heatmap·Compare Sacramento to another location·View the California tree protection overview
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Parkway Planting in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Sacramento County handle parkway planting.