Tigard, OR Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Street tree planting in the City of Tigard is governed by Chapter 8.08 of the Tigard Municipal Code. Section 8.08.030 sets the rule: written approval comes first, and it is issued under § 8.04.020 using the approval criteria in the Street Tree Planting Standards in the Urban Forestry Manual. Those standards are adopted by administrative rule under § 8.02.040 and are not printed in Title 8 itself, so the species and siting criteria live in the manual.

A street tree is defined in § 8.02.050 as any tree of at least 1½-inch caliper or DBH within a public right-of-way or an easement for public access under City of Tigard jurisdiction. A tree outside the right-of-way counts too if the city can demonstrate it was planted or preserved as a street tree to meet a city permit or project requirement. Median trees are not street trees: § 8.08.060 sends median tree planting through the same City Manager procedures, using the Median Tree Planting Standards.

The application process in § 8.04.020 requires the form provided by the city manager or designee, the information the form requests, a response to each relevant approval criterion in the Urban Forestry Manual, and the required fee. The city manager or designee approves, approves with conditions or denies in writing. The decision is final and valid for up to one year unless a longer period is conditioned in the permit.

Owners carry the long-term duty. Section 8.08.020.A makes the owners of lots abutting, fronting or adjacent to a street tree, or owning the largest percentage of its trunk immediately above the trunk flare or root buttresses, responsible for maintaining and removing it. No one other than the city plants a street tree on a lot, or in the right-of-way beside it, without the responsible owner's permission. Under § 8.08.040.B a street tree that dies within three years after planting is removed and replaced in accordance with the previous permit approval.

When a Title 18 land use permit approves tree planting, § 8.02.020.B says no separate Title 8 tree permit is required. For development, § 8.02.040.E adds street tree soil volume standards to the manual.