Sioux Falls, SD Tree Protection: Tree Replacement Requirements (2026)

Authority: Sioux Falls, SD Code § 160.485 (Landscape Standards), part of the Shape Sioux Falls 2040 Zoning Code (Chapter 160), plus Chapter 94 (Forestry) for parkway plantings. The § 160.485 standard for new development requires: (a) one tree per 50 feet of frontage along all platted public streets, private streets, and highways, OR one tree per six required parking/loading/stacking spaces — whichever is greater; (b) deciduous shade trees at a minimum 2-inch caliper; (c) up to 25 percent may be evergreen/coniferous (but not in vision-clearance areas, parking-lot interiors, or right-of-way); (d) no more than 20 percent of the total tree requirement may be planted in the right-of-way. For private homeowners outside the development context, there is no city-imposed 1-for-1 replacement mandate when removing a healthy tree from a residential lot. However, when the city removes an ash tree from the boulevard under the EAB Response Plan, the property owner is encouraged to participate in the Street Tree Voucher / CommuniTree Program, which provides a $100 voucher toward an approved replacement species (the city aims to replant rather than abandon parking strips). South Dakota has no statewide tree-replacement statute; municipal authority comes from the home-rule charter (SDCL Chapter 6-12) and SDCL § 9-29-1.