Do you need a permit?
No permit required for most private trees
Chattanooga rewrote its entire tree ordinance in April 2025, and the new version answers the homeowner question in one line: the article "shall not apply to any parcel of land currently being used for a single-unit dwelling or two-unit dwelling." There is no diameter threshold for a house lot, because the ordinance does not reach one. The city permit is for public trees — street trees, park trees, trees on city parcels. Two things still catch people: the strip between your sidewalk and the curb is a city Street Tree, and a tree formally designated as a Champion, Landmark, Historic or Notable Tree is protected wherever it stands.
Size threshold
None applies to a single-family or duplex lot. The diameter figures in the ordinance do other jobs: 12 inches DBH triggers contractor registration ("All individuals or companies intending to do tree work for hire on any tree over twelve (12) inches DBH within the city, shall register online with the Urban Forestry Program"); 24 inches DBH triggers recompense on public land; and "Tree Canopy" destruction over 5,000 square feet is prohibited on nonexempt land only. DBH is "diameter measurement for existing trees, made at four and one-half (4.5) feet above the ground."
What's protected in Chattanooga
- Protected Tree — "A tree which may not be removed or disturbed without a permit. This category includes most Public Property Trees as specified in this Article, and Notable Trees on private property."
- Public Property Tree — "any tree now or hereafter growing on any City street, park, or other City-owned property. This definition includes Street Trees, Landscape Trees, and trees in Wooded Areas growing on City property."
- Street Trees — "trees growing between the sidewalk and curb, either in a tree well, verge, or planter, or in a tree well surrounded by a sidewalk on three sides." This is the front-yard trap.
- Designated trees, wherever they stand — "No living tree within the city designated on the State of Tennessee Champion Tree list, designated as a Landmark or Historic Tree by the State of Tennessee or designated organization, or designated as a Notable Tree by the Chattanooga Tree Commission shall be removed or otherwise substantially altered ... without first obtaining a Tree Ordinance Permit." Those permits "shall be issued only upon a satisfactory showing that the tree in question is either Dead, Diseased, or Hazardous."
- Private Property Tree — "any proposed or existing trees now or hereafter growing on private property used to meet any City of Chattanooga Landscape or Zoning ordinance or condition." A tree planted to satisfy a landscape condition stays regulated.
How to apply in Chattanooga
- 1
These steps apply to a public-property tree or a designated tree. A tree on an ordinary house lot needs nothing.
- 2
Apply online through the city's OpenGov portal for the Tree Ordinance Permit.
- 3
Submit an "Application and site plan showing tree protection, grading and all other impacts to Public trees."
- 4
Pay the permit fee. The city page states $500, non-refundable.
- 5
"The permit must be approved by the City Forester or designee before any approved tree modification or disturbance takes place." The permit is valid for two years.
- 6
Give notice "to the City Forester or designee for their inspection, within five (5) days of anticipated work completion."
- 7
If the forester does not act within thirty days, the permit "shall be considered to be denied." Appeal to the Tree Commission in writing within ten business days, then to the Board of Zoning Appeals within thirty days.
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Fee
- The code contradicts itself and both figures are reported here. Section 32-312(a)(10) sets a tiered fee — "Tree Ordinance Permit—Tier 1: $100 / Tier 2: $250 / Tier 3: $500 / Tree Replacement Fee: $200/inch DBH" — while cross-referencing Section 31-322, whose fee table lists a flat "Tree Ordinance (each) | $500." The city website publishes only the $500 figure and says it "is non-refundable." Notable Tree nomination is free. A Timber Removal Permit (A-1 zoning or certified tree farms) is "thirty dollars ($30.00) per acre affected or a minimum fee of fifty dollars ($50.00)."
- Penalties
- Section 32-313: anyone who removes or damages a city tree without a permit "shall be responsible for the reimbursement to the city for the value of the appraised loss, as described in the latest published edition of the Guide for Plant Appraisal by The Council Of Tree & Landscape Appraisers," plus "the actual costs incurred by the City for removing remaining debris and replacing any removed tree." Reimbursement is "capped at $50,000 per tree and $100,000 per site." The same section preserves state law: "Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed to remove the State statutory liability and award of damages for negligent or intentional tree cutting as set forth in Tenn. Code Ann. s. 43-28-312." Damaging a designated tree draws "a fee equal to the appraised value of the tree."
- Ordinance
- Chattanooga Code of Ordinances Chapter 32 (Streets and Sidewalks), Article XIII — the Chattanooga Tree Ordinance, Sections 32-300 through 32-322. Completely rewritten by Ordinance No. 14217, s. 1, adopted April 8, 2025, which "repealed the former Art. XIII., ss. 32-300—32-319, and enacted a new Art. XIII"; the prior version dated back to Ordinance No. 9315 of January 30, 1990. Fee table at Section 31-322; Timber Removal Permit at Sections 31-325.1 through 31-325.9. Code current through Ordinance No. 14347, enacted April 14, 2026 (Supp. No. 40, Update No. 1).
Worth knowing
- You have an affirmative duty to remove dangerous trees. Section 32-311(d): "Property owners shall remove all dead, diseased or dangerous trees, or broken or decayed limbs which constitute a menace to the safety of the public." Minimum clearance is eight feet over sidewalks and twelve feet over streets.
- The city can force the issue. Section 32-315: Chattanooga "shall have the right to order or cause the removal of any trees that are dead or diseased on private property," with fourteen days to comply before the city does it and charges you as a special assessment.
- Check your tree company. Any firm working on a tree over 12 inches DBH must register with Urban Forestry, hold a city business license and carry liability insurance, and "It is the responsibility of the tree company to remove the wood waste from the property... Disposal of wood material by placing it at the street/city right-of-way for collection will be considered illegal dumping." Unregistered firms face a stop work order and fines directed at the company, not the homeowner.
- Dead, diseased and hazardous trees are exempt from the article outright, as are emergencies: "In case of emergencies, such as hurricane, tornado, windstorm, flood, ice storm or other disasters, the requirements of these regulations may be waived by the City Forester."
- Notable Tree designation is voluntary and reversible. The owner must consent to the listing, and "An owner of property containing a Notable Tree may remove said tree from the list by notifying the City Forester in writing... The tree will then come off the list within thirty (30) days."
- The ordinance is on a permanent revision cycle. Section 32-322 requires City Council to review it six months after the effective date and then "the Tree Commission shall conduct annual reviews in perpetuity." Expect the text to move.
- For a fallen tree, a broken branch, a removal request or a tree problem, the city routes everything through 311: "The Request Types of Tree Fallen/Branch, Tree Removal, Tree Trimming, and Tree Problem are linked to Urban Forestry."
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.
- — No chattanooga.gov page states in plain language that no permit is required on a private residential lot. The answer rests on the code text at Section 32-316(a)(1), which we read directly; the city's web pages describe only public-tree permits, which corroborates but does not independently confirm.
- — Whether the Tier 1 $100 fee is ever actually charged, given that both Section 31-322 and the city website publish a flat $500.
- — No public list of Notable Trees, State Champion Trees or Landmark/Historic Trees was located, so there is no self-service way to check whether your tree is designated. Call Urban Forestry before cutting a large or historically significant tree.
- — The name of the current City Forester. Frank Welsh is listed as Tree Canopy Coordinator on the permit page; that is a different title.
- — Whether (423) 643-6311 reaches Urban Forestry directly or routes through the general 311 queue.
- — A drafting defect worth knowing about: Section 32-316(a) is captioned "Applicability of article" but sits inside a single section, so it is not certain on the face of the code whether the single-family exemption also switches off Section 32-317's protection of designated trees on house lots. Section 32-317(a) is independently citywide ("No living tree within the city..."), which cuts the other way. Reported, not reconciled.
- — Hamilton County rules for unincorporated areas outside the city limits.
Sources
- City of Chattanooga — Urban Forestry
- City of Chattanooga — Urban Forestry Division and Tree Commission
- City of Chattanooga — Tree Ordinance Permit
- City of Chattanooga — Notable Tree Location
- City of Chattanooga — Land Development Office
- Chattanooga Code Ch. 32 Art. XIII — Chattanooga Tree Ordinance (Municode)
- Chattanooga Code Sec. 31-322 — fee table (Municode)