San Clemente, CA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

The parkway is City property by definition: the code fixes it as the area from the back of the curb to the edge of the right-of-way, or from the street edge to the right-of-way edge where there is no curb. 080 makes it unlawful to install or maintain any landscaping there without first obtaining a permit from the City. An applicant submits a completed application and the fee set by City Council resolution to the Beaches, Parks and Recreation Department, along with plans describing the area to be landscaped, the plant materials proposed, and the location and nature of any related improvements.

Issuance is entirely discretionary: the Director of Beaches, Parks and Recreation may grant, condition, or refuse the permit as needed to protect public health, safety and welfare. If the City later decides the landscaping or an accompanying improvement must come out, the Director sends the permittee written notice, and the material must be removed within 30 days. Anything left after that period can be removed by the City as a public nuisance, with the removal cost charged back to the permittee as a lien on the property or as a personal debt.

24 to keep any trees, shrubs or hedges on their own land trimmed for street clearance, but planting inside the parkway strip itself runs through this permit, not through ordinary yard maintenance rules.