Tree Removal Permits in Chesapeake, VA

Verified against Chesapeake city sources · last checked 2026-08-07

Do you need a permit?

It depends on the tree

Location decides it, not tree size. On a dry inland lot with no construction proposed, Chesapeake asks nothing of you — the Landscape Ordinance is comprehensive but it only ever attaches to a subdivision plat, a site plan or a building permit application, so it never reaches an existing house standing still. Inside the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area District it is the opposite: the vegetated buffer must be "continuously maintained," removal needs the city's written authorization at any size, and the city runs a standalone CBPA Tree Removal Application for exactly this. Chesapeake is very low-lying, so the Bay case is not a rare edge case here. Check the city's CBPA map first.

Size threshold

There is no general diameter threshold, because there is no general private tree permit. Every number lives inside the Bay ordinance. City Code Sec. 26-520(b)(2)b: "Existing woody vegetation, including, but not limited to, trees over one and one-half inches in diameter at breast height (DBH), shall be preserved outside the construction footprint." Sec. 26-515 defines DBH as "the diameter of a tree measured outside the bark at a point four and one-half feet above the ground," and defines a mature tree as "a canopy tree with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 12 inches or greater or an understory tree with a DBH of four inches or greater." Watch the mixed conventions across Chesapeake documents: the Bay ordinance uses DBH, the landscape ordinance's replacement standard uses caliper, and its planting standard uses height.

What's protected in Chesapeake

All existing vegetation in the 100-foot Resource Protection Area buffer, which "shall be retained" and may be removed only by the city manager's designee for limited purposes (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a)
All existing vegetation anywhere in the CBPA District: "Removal of existing vegetation in the CBPA shall be limited to the approvals permitted in subsections 26-520(b)(2) and 26-519(b)(3)" (Sec. 26-520(b)(3)d)
Required canopy coverage in the CBPA, which the specifications manual says "shall be preserved in perpetuity, including natural understory and groundcover"
Trees inside a tree preservation area marked on an approved plan (CZO Sec. 19-602(A))
Outstanding trees and tree clusters credited toward required canopy (CZO Sec. 19-602(E))
Trees on any street, which Sec. 66-1 defines to include "alleys, avenues, boulevards, parks, public rights-of-way and all other public places or easements"

How to apply in Chesapeake

1
First, check whether your lot is in the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area District using the city's CBPA map. If it is not, and you are not building, there is nothing to file.
2
If it is, submit a CBPA Tree Removal Application through the city's eBUILD system at aca3.accela.com/Chesapeake, under the Planning applications.
3
Expect to replace what you remove. Trees taken out of the RPA buffer "shall be replaced to provide 50 percent tree canopy coverage" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a).
4
If the work is prohibited development inside an RPA, you need a CBPA Exception, filed through the same portal, with a fee set by the annual budget ordinance and applicant-paid newspaper advertising for the CBPA Board hearing.
5
For a tree in the street, right-of-way, a park or an easement, apply to Development and Permits for a permit under Sec. 66-106 — that section covers trimming as well as cutting.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee: The city lists "Tree removal: $50" under Civil Permits Fees. Every neighbouring item in that table is a right-of-way or easement permit, so this most likely implements the street-tree section rather than any private-lot permit, and we could not find city text stating its scope. CBPA application fees are set by the annual budget ordinance and no dollar figure is published on any city fee page.
Penalties: CBPA violations are serious. Sec. 26-530 makes a violation "a Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by a fine in an amount not exceeding $1,000.00. Each day the violation continues shall be deemed a separate offense," and separately authorizes the circuit court to assess a civil penalty that "shall not exceed $5,000.00 for each day of violation." Consent orders through the CBPA Board may reach $10,000 for each violation, and stop-work orders and mandatory restoration are both available. On the zoning side, CZO Sec. 19-609 makes a landscape ordinance violation a zoning violation. And if a tree preserved for canopy credit is "willfully destroyed, injured or removed," it must be replaced with one large tree of four-inch caliper and one small tree six to eight feet tall for every 300 square feet of area in which the tree stood (Sec. 19-602(E)(4)).
Ordinance: Chesapeake Zoning Ordinance Sec. 19-600 et seq., the Chesapeake Landscape Ordinance (Ord. No. 97-O-141, November 18, 1997; Sec. 19-601 amended through Ord. No. 17-O-081, November 21, 2017; Sec. 19-602 amended through Ord. No. 10-O-127, October 19, 2010). Chesapeake City Code Chapter 26, Article IX — Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area District (Ord. No. 03-O-160, December 9, 2003; most recently amended by Ord. No. 25-O-109, October 28, 2025). City Code Secs. 66-106 and 66-121, street trees (Ord. No. 09-O-100, August 11, 2009). The Zoning Ordinance is codified through Ordinance No. 26-O-011, enacted January 20, 2026 (Supp. No. 106); the Code of Ordinances through Ordinance No. 26-O-032, enacted April 28, 2026 (Supp. No. 147).

Worth knowing

The scope clause is structural rather than an express exemption. CZO Sec. 19-601(A)(2) requires a final landscaping plan "as part of the building permit application for any single-family or duplex residential construction on a lot," Sec. 19-601(B) ties the tree preservation site analysis to "the submittal of each preliminary and final subdivision plat, site plan, or erosion and sediment control plan," and Sec. 19-602 opens "The landscape plan for every site shall contain the tree preservation and canopy requirements set out below." No plan, no duty.
Sec. 19-607 makes the same point from the other direction: "Additions or modifications to existing development shall be landscaped according to this ordinance. Landscaping requirements shall be confined to the area of new development."
No permit is not the same as no consequences. Sec. 19-605 requires that "retained and newly provided landscaping shall be maintained in healthy condition" with no time limit, so a homeowner who removes a tree that was credited on the plan for their house can still be made to replace it years later.
The Bay buffer rule reads: "In order to maintain the functional value of the 100-foot RPA buffer area, existing vegetation shall be retained. The city manager's designee may authorize removal of existing vegetation in the RPA only to provide for reasonable sightlines, access paths, general wood lot management, and best management practices" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a). The subsection opens by requiring the buffer be "continuously maintained," which is why this applies to an existing house with no construction.
Even dead and dying trees in the buffer need sign-off: they "may be removed and thinning of trees may be allowed pursuant to sound horticulture practice and with the approval of the director of development and permits, or designee, provided that any trees removed shall be replaced to provide 50 percent tree canopy coverage" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a.4).
Single-family-zoned lots must provide tree canopy at maturity covering 20% of the calculation area, capped at eighteen large trees or thirty-six small trees on lots a half-acre and larger (CZO Sec. 19-602(C)(2)).
A contradiction we are recording rather than resolving: the zoning ordinance caps single-family canopy at eighteen large trees, while the Bay ordinance at Sec. 26-520(b)(3)b sets the Resource Management Area requirement at 20% canopy "with a limit of twenty (20) large canopy trees for single-family residential lots." Eighteen versus twenty. CZO Sec. 12-501(B) resolves conflicts in favour of the more stringent requirement offering greater water quality protection.
A second contradiction: the Code defines land disturbance at Sec. 26-515 as "any man-made change to the land surface that may result in soil erosion or has the potential to change its runoff characteristics," while the CBPA Specifications Manual defines it as "any activity upon land which causes, contributes to, or results in the removal or covering of the vegetation upon such land." The manual's version expressly captures vegetation removal; the Code's does not.
Ordinary yard work does not trigger a land-disturbing permit. Sec. 26-347(d)(1) exempts "such minor land-disturbing activities as home gardens and individual home landscaping, repairs and maintenance work," and (d)(6) exempts disturbed areas under 10,000 square feet generally, or under 2,500 square feet in a Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area.
The city will not remove trees entirely inside private property, and will not remove branches of city trees overhanging private property. It does remove downed city trees and any part of a downed private tree landing in the right-of-way.
You may trim branches of a city-owned tree overhanging your property. Removing the city tree itself needs right-of-way permits and Public Works Director approval.
The Landscape Ordinance PDF the city publishes in its document centre is stale — it is captioned as effective January 1, 1998 with amendments effective October 16, 2008, and predates the 2010 and 2017 amendments. Use the codified version.

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.

— Whether your lot is inside the CBPA District. Check the city's CBPA map, then call Planning at 757-382-6176.
— Whether the $50 Civil Permits tree removal fee applies to private lots or only to trees in the right-of-way and easements. Its placement strongly suggests the latter, but no city text states its scope.
— Whether the CBPA Tree Removal Application carries its own fee, and what CBPA Exception fees are. The ordinance defers both to the annual budget ordinance.
— Whether Sec. 66-106 is enforced against trees standing in a platted drainage or utility easement on a private lot. The definition of street reaches easements, but we found no city interpretation either way.
— Whether the city requires any notice for emergency or hazard tree removal outside the CBPA.

Sources

Who to contact in Chesapeake

Department of Development and Permits, City of Chesapeake

Permit line: Development and Permits, 757-382-6018. Planning Department, which coordinates on Resource Protection Area vegetation removal: 757-382-6176. Zoning Administration: 757-382-6262. Civil permits, which is where the tree removal fee sits: 757-382-6101. Urban forestry sits in Parks, Recreation and Tourism at 757-382-6411. For anything else, the Customer Contact Center is 757-382-CITY (2489) — note that Chesapeake does not run a 311 service, and 757-382-2489 is also the Public Works number given on the city tree removal policy page. develop-permits@cityofchesapeake.net Official page

306 Cedar Road, 2nd Floor, Chesapeake, VA 23322

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Size threshold

What's protected in Chesapeake

All existing vegetation in the 100-foot Resource Protection Area buffer, which "shall be retained" and may be removed only by the city manager's designee for limited purposes (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a)

All existing vegetation anywhere in the CBPA District: "Removal of existing vegetation in the CBPA shall be limited to the approvals permitted in subsections 26-520(b)(2) and 26-519(b)(3)" (Sec. 26-520(b)(3)d)

Required canopy coverage in the CBPA, which the specifications manual says "shall be preserved in perpetuity, including natural understory and groundcover"

Trees inside a tree preservation area marked on an approved plan (CZO Sec. 19-602(A))

Outstanding trees and tree clusters credited toward required canopy (CZO Sec. 19-602(E))

Trees on any street, which Sec. 66-1 defines to include "alleys, avenues, boulevards, parks, public rights-of-way and all other public places or easements"

How to apply in Chesapeake

1
First, check whether your lot is in the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area District using the city's CBPA map. If it is not, and you are not building, there is nothing to file.
2
If it is, submit a CBPA Tree Removal Application through the city's eBUILD system at aca3.accela.com/Chesapeake, under the Planning applications.
3
Expect to replace what you remove. Trees taken out of the RPA buffer "shall be replaced to provide 50 percent tree canopy coverage" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a).
4
If the work is prohibited development inside an RPA, you need a CBPA Exception, filed through the same portal, with a fee set by the annual budget ordinance and applicant-paid newspaper advertising for the CBPA Board hearing.
5
For a tree in the street, right-of-way, a park or an easement, apply to Development and Permits for a permit under Sec. 66-106 — that section covers trimming as well as cutting.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee

The city lists "Tree removal: $50" under Civil Permits Fees. Every neighbouring item in that table is a right-of-way or easement permit, so this most likely implements the street-tree section rather than any private-lot permit, and we could not find city text stating its scope. CBPA application fees are set by the annual budget ordinance and no dollar figure is published on any city fee page.

Penalties

CBPA violations are serious. Sec. 26-530 makes a violation "a Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by a fine in an amount not exceeding $1,000.00. Each day the violation continues shall be deemed a separate offense," and separately authorizes the circuit court to assess a civil penalty that "shall not exceed $5,000.00 for each day of violation." Consent orders through the CBPA Board may reach $10,000 for each violation, and stop-work orders and mandatory restoration are both available. On the zoning side, CZO Sec. 19-609 makes a landscape ordinance violation a zoning violation. And if a tree preserved for canopy credit is "willfully destroyed, injured or removed," it must be replaced with one large tree of four-inch caliper and one small tree six to eight feet tall for every 300 square feet of area in which the tree stood (Sec. 19-602(E)(4)).

Ordinance

Chesapeake Zoning Ordinance Sec. 19-600 et seq., the Chesapeake Landscape Ordinance (Ord. No. 97-O-141, November 18, 1997; Sec. 19-601 amended through Ord. No. 17-O-081, November 21, 2017; Sec. 19-602 amended through Ord. No. 10-O-127, October 19, 2010). Chesapeake City Code Chapter 26, Article IX — Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area District (Ord. No. 03-O-160, December 9, 2003; most recently amended by Ord. No. 25-O-109, October 28, 2025). City Code Secs. 66-106 and 66-121, street trees (Ord. No. 09-O-100, August 11, 2009). The Zoning Ordinance is codified through Ordinance No. 26-O-011, enacted January 20, 2026 (Supp. No. 106); the Code of Ordinances through Ordinance No. 26-O-032, enacted April 28, 2026 (Supp. No. 147).

Worth knowing

The scope clause is structural rather than an express exemption. CZO Sec. 19-601(A)(2) requires a final landscaping plan "as part of the building permit application for any single-family or duplex residential construction on a lot," Sec. 19-601(B) ties the tree preservation site analysis to "the submittal of each preliminary and final subdivision plat, site plan, or erosion and sediment control plan," and Sec. 19-602 opens "The landscape plan for every site shall contain the tree preservation and canopy requirements set out below." No plan, no duty.
Sec. 19-607 makes the same point from the other direction: "Additions or modifications to existing development shall be landscaped according to this ordinance. Landscaping requirements shall be confined to the area of new development."
No permit is not the same as no consequences. Sec. 19-605 requires that "retained and newly provided landscaping shall be maintained in healthy condition" with no time limit, so a homeowner who removes a tree that was credited on the plan for their house can still be made to replace it years later.
The Bay buffer rule reads: "In order to maintain the functional value of the 100-foot RPA buffer area, existing vegetation shall be retained. The city manager's designee may authorize removal of existing vegetation in the RPA only to provide for reasonable sightlines, access paths, general wood lot management, and best management practices" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a). The subsection opens by requiring the buffer be "continuously maintained," which is why this applies to an existing house with no construction.
Even dead and dying trees in the buffer need sign-off: they "may be removed and thinning of trees may be allowed pursuant to sound horticulture practice and with the approval of the director of development and permits, or designee, provided that any trees removed shall be replaced to provide 50 percent tree canopy coverage" (Sec. 26-519(b)(3)a.4).
Single-family-zoned lots must provide tree canopy at maturity covering 20% of the calculation area, capped at eighteen large trees or thirty-six small trees on lots a half-acre and larger (CZO Sec. 19-602(C)(2)).
A contradiction we are recording rather than resolving: the zoning ordinance caps single-family canopy at eighteen large trees, while the Bay ordinance at Sec. 26-520(b)(3)b sets the Resource Management Area requirement at 20% canopy "with a limit of twenty (20) large canopy trees for single-family residential lots." Eighteen versus twenty. CZO Sec. 12-501(B) resolves conflicts in favour of the more stringent requirement offering greater water quality protection.
A second contradiction: the Code defines land disturbance at Sec. 26-515 as "any man-made change to the land surface that may result in soil erosion or has the potential to change its runoff characteristics," while the CBPA Specifications Manual defines it as "any activity upon land which causes, contributes to, or results in the removal or covering of the vegetation upon such land." The manual's version expressly captures vegetation removal; the Code's does not.
Ordinary yard work does not trigger a land-disturbing permit. Sec. 26-347(d)(1) exempts "such minor land-disturbing activities as home gardens and individual home landscaping, repairs and maintenance work," and (d)(6) exempts disturbed areas under 10,000 square feet generally, or under 2,500 square feet in a Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area.
The city will not remove trees entirely inside private property, and will not remove branches of city trees overhanging private property. It does remove downed city trees and any part of a downed private tree landing in the right-of-way.
You may trim branches of a city-owned tree overhanging your property. Removing the city tree itself needs right-of-way permits and Public Works Director approval.
The Landscape Ordinance PDF the city publishes in its document centre is stale — it is captioned as effective January 1, 1998 with amendments effective October 16, 2008, and predates the 2010 and 2017 amendments. Use the codified version.

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.

— Whether your lot is inside the CBPA District. Check the city's CBPA map, then call Planning at 757-382-6176.
— Whether the $50 Civil Permits tree removal fee applies to private lots or only to trees in the right-of-way and easements. Its placement strongly suggests the latter, but no city text states its scope.
— Whether the CBPA Tree Removal Application carries its own fee, and what CBPA Exception fees are. The ordinance defers both to the annual budget ordinance.
— Whether Sec. 66-106 is enforced against trees standing in a platted drainage or utility easement on a private lot. The definition of street reaches easements, but we found no city interpretation either way.
— Whether the city requires any notice for emergency or hazard tree removal outside the CBPA.