Bellevue, NE Tree Protection: Protected Tree Species (2026)

Bellevue Code of Ordinances § 29.5-24 lets the City Council designate trees with "significance to the community" as historical trees, but only after the City Tree Board (seven members, including a certified arborist, appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council under § 29.5-18) identifies and recommends them. The adopted list of historical trees is kept on file in the office of the city clerk and made available to the public during business hours, and the council can modify that list over time. A historical designation does not expire: the code states a tree "will remain so unless it becomes necessary to classify it as a risk tree and removed as such," the same risk-tree standard the chapter's definitions section (§ 29.5-4) ties to danger from disease, decay, pests, weak unions, or deadwood.

Outside that risk exception, § 29.5-24 is direct: "Historical trees may not be removed without the approval of the city council," a higher bar than ordinary tree work, which the Tree Board can authorize on its own under § 29.5-22. Anyone who obstructs Tree Board staff or agents while they carry out planting, pruning, or removal duties tied to this chapter, including historical-tree work, is separately in violation of § 29.5-27. A person may appeal a Tree Board ruling or order to the City Council, but the appeal must be filed in writing with the city clerk within ten days under § 29.5-28.