Do you need a permit?
No permit required for most private trees
No. If you live in a single-family house or a duplex in Alexandria, the city's tree rules do not reach your yard, and the exemption is written into the code rather than inferred: Land Development Code Section 7.3.3 says the section "do[es] not apply to duplex dwellings, single-family dwellings, or group living uses." What the rules do reach is the tree out front. Section 7.3.4.B prohibits "removal, cutting, planting, pruning or other maintenance of trees or shrubs" in the dedicated street right-of-way or on other public property without a Landscaping and Tree Permit, and removing a public tree without one is a public nuisance carrying a fine of up to 500 dollars per tree. The catch for anyone researching this is that Alexandria's tree rule is not in the municipal code at all - it lives in a separate Land Development Code that the code merely incorporates by reference.
Size threshold
None for private property, because no permit applies there. Do not mistake the caliper figures in the LDC for removal thresholds - they are nursery specifications for trees being PLANTED. Section 7.3.5: "All single trunk trees shall have a minimum two-inch caliper and must measure a minimum of eight feet tall immediately after planting," and multi-trunk trees "shall have main stems with a minimum one-inch caliper per trunk."
What's protected in Alexandria
- Any tree or shrub in the dedicated street area of the public right-of-way or on other public property. LDC Section 9.13.1.B: "No person, including private or public utilities, shall remove, cut, plant, prune or otherwise maintain any tree or shrub within dedicated street area of public right-of-way or other public property within the city, without a landscaping and tree permit."
- Trees on new development with parking areas, and on building expansions of more than 10 percent of floor area or vehicular use area additions of five parking spaces or more (LDC Section 7.3.2.A). Only the expansion area must comply.
How to apply in Alexandria
- 1
For a tree on your own single-family or duplex lot there is no application, because the section does not apply to you.
- 2
For a tree in the right-of-way or on public property, apply for a Landscaping and Tree Permit. Applications go to the planning director, and LDC Section 9.13.2 requires two sets of the required plans.
- 3
The planning director reviews the application against the criteria in Section 9.13.4 and, per Section 9.13.3.C, must "within 10 working days from receipt of such plans either approve them or issue to the applicant a written denial."
- 4
Plans come back marked approved, approved as noted, or denied. Rejected plans may be resubmitted once the noted corrections are made.
- 5
Removal on public property is approved on condition-based grounds rather than on request - Section 9.13.4.B allows it where the tree "is unsafe because of growth which cannot be corrected by proper trimming, because of damage caused by the elements, or because of age, disease or other debilitating cause, because of insecure root system which might cause the tree to fall, because of existing or potential interference with street use," or root interference with sewer or utility facilities.
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Fee
- Not published in the Land Development Code. LDC Section 10.2 provides only that "Filing fees shall be established from time to time by resolution of the city council," so the current amount has to be confirmed with the planning office.
- Penalties
- LDC Section 7.3.13.C(3): "The property owner, and/or person removing a public tree or tree part(s) without a permit shall be responsible for the violation. The removal of trees in violation of this section is a public nuisance and the violator may be fined not to exceed $500. Each tree is considered a separate violation." A contractor or hired worker who puts debris in the public right-of-way "shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $500" (Section 7.3.13.C(4)). Before fines are levied the planning director must give written notice by certified mail and allow 30 calendar days to correct (Section 7.3.13.B).
- Ordinance
- Alexandria Land Development Code, adopted by the city council September 9, 2015, and incorporated by reference in its entirety into Code of Ordinances Chapter 28 (Land Development). The tree provisions are LDC Sections 7.3 (Landscape and Trees) and 9.13 (Landscaping and Tree Permits). The Code of Ordinances itself is codified through Ordinance No. 109, enacted April 02, 2024 (Supp. No. 109).
Worth knowing
- Alexandria is the clearest case in this state of a tree rule that is not where you would look for it. The Code of Ordinances contains no tree chapter; Chapter 28 is a single node whose only substantive text is a footnote incorporating the Land Development Code by reference. Anyone reading the municipal code alone would conclude Alexandria has no tree rules at all.
- Louisiana licenses arborists at state level, so whoever you hire to cut the tree must hold a state licence even though you need no permit. See the state note at the top of this file.
- The city is working on amendments to the Land Development Code - it has published an executive summary of proposed changes and a hearing draft. Nothing here reflects those changes, which had not been adopted as of the date below.
What we could not confirm
We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.
- — The current Landscaping and Tree Permit fee. The LDC delegates fees to city council resolution and does not state an amount, and no fee schedule was located on the city website.
- — Whether the proposed Land Development Code amendments have since been adopted, and whether they alter Section 7.3.3's single-family exemption.
- — The URL Municode gives for the incorporated Land Development Code (cityofalexandriala.com/node/4769) is dead - the city has since migrated to WordPress. The operative 2015 text used here was retrieved from the city's current media library instead.