Stratford, CT Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

The Town of Stratford sets its street tree planting standard in the Streetscapes item of the Transit-Oriented Overlay District (TOD) design guidelines, Section 3.7.1(E) of the Stratford Zoning Regulations. The TOD covers the area around the Stratford Train Station, and the duty falls on the developer: street trees shall be planted by the developer along all public rights-of-way. Spacing is a ceiling, not a target: trees go in at intervals of no more than 35 feet.

Species choice is regulated too. Trees must be selected that require minimal maintenance, are of native origin and have minimal potential for conflicts with overhead power lines and other utilities. The same guidelines add that parking lots visible from a street are screened by a three-foot-high wall, fence or hedge and that the screening shall also include street trees. Parking areas also carry tree requirements: no more than 12 adjacent perpendicular parking spaces without a raised planting island containing a tree, with the island at least eight feet wide.

The Zoning Commission applies these standards through the Special Permit that Section 3.7.1(F) requires for TOD applications under Section 7.3.4.

Once a tree stands on Town-owned property, Chapter 200 of the Town Code controls it. Under Section 200-14, no person shall cut, trim, prune, remove or injure any tree on Town-owned property without a permit from the Tree Warden, who is the Director of Public Works under Section 200-9. Permits expire 30 days after issue unless the Tree Warden notes otherwise (Section 200-15). Section 200-12 makes any tree planted on Town-owned property the property of the Town, and Section 200-8 has the Tree Warden maintain the Stratford Arboricultural Specifications and Policy Manual for planting standards on Town-owned property.