Tree Removal Permits in Warren, MI

Verified against Warren city sources · last checked 2026-08-06

Do you need a permit?

No permit required for most private trees

Warren rewrote its whole tree chapter in January 2025, and the new version regulates public trees only. The single permit clause in the code is Section 38-11(a): "A person shall not remove a public tree or public shrub without a permit issued by the department of public service." A public tree is one "located within a right-of-way or in a public place," and there is no permit, no diameter threshold, no species list and no replacement requirement for a tree behind your lot line. Two things still catch Warren homeowners. The margin area, meaning the grass between your lot line and the street, is city-owned, so the tree out front is a public tree you may neither remove nor prune. And the code makes it a violation to FAIL to remove a dead tree on your own property.

Size threshold

None. No diameter, DBH, caliper or height figure triggers a permit anywhere in the Warren code. The only dimensional language is definitional, at Section 38-4: a "Tree is a woody perennial plant that can grow taller than ten (10) feet and has a single, usually elongated, main stem with few or no branches on its lower part," a "Shrub is a low woody plant that is less than ten (10) feet in height," and "Routine maintenance is pruning small limbs (less than one (1) inch in diameter) from trees or shrubs."

What's protected in Warren

Public tree — "a tree located within a right-of-way or in a public place." Public shrub is defined the same way.
Right-of-way — "a public street (including the sidewalk and margin area) or a public alley."
Margin area, the tree lawn, which Warren says outright is city land — "the city-owned area between the lot line and the street. Margin area does not include the area between the lot line and the street under federal, state, or Macomb County jurisdiction."
Public place — "city-owned property used for a public purpose, including, but not limited to, a park, pool, playground, or public building grounds."
There is no protected species or heritage tree list in the code. Section 38-9(a) directs the Urban Forestry Committee to develop removal standards, a prohibited tree and shrub list and a preferred species list, and Section 38-9(c) files them with the Clerk for public inspection rather than publishing them.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee: No fee is published for the Section 38-11 public tree removal permit, and no city fee schedule covering it was located. The only fee authorization in Chapter 38 is for the separate margin-area landscaping permit, at Section 38-19(d): "By resolution, city council may establish application fees." No such resolution was found. An absent fee is not proof of a free permit.
Penalties: Section 38-25: "A violation of a provision of this chapter is a municipal civil infraction punishable by a fine of up to five hundred dollars ($500.00) per violation, cost not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00), reimbursement to the City for reasonable costs for tree replacement, and other sanctions as provided by MCL 600.8727." Section 38-21 lets the city fix the problem itself after written notice giving ten days to remedy, then "charge a responsible person any reasonable costs the city incurs."
Ordinance: Warren Code of Ordinances Part II, Chapter 38 — Vegetation, cited by Section 38-1 as the "tree and vegetation ordinance." Enacted by Ordinance No. 80-829, Sections 2 through 5, adopted January 28, 2025, published February 12, 2025, effective February 17, 2025. The editor's note records that it "repealed the former Ch. 38, Sections 38-1-38-21, and enacted a new Ch. 38 as set out herein." The same ordinance amended Code Section 1-9(c)(3) to let zoning inspectors write tickets for Chapter 38 violations. Charter authority at Section 3.1(b)(3)(l). Code current through Ordinance No. 80-840, adopted October 28, 2025 (Supp. No. 102).

Worth knowing

The obligation that actually generates letters runs the other way. Section 38-20(10) makes it a violation to do the following: "Failing to remove a severely damaged, diseased, or dead tree located on the person's property." The same list also bars "During the course of construction, failing to take the necessary safeguards to prevent topsoil disturbance out to the dripline, and other damage (including root damage) to public trees or public shrubs in the area."
You cannot prune the street tree either. Section 38-14: "Except as provided in section 38-15, a person shall not perform maintenance on a public tree." Section 38-15(2) is the exception, and it is for hazards only: a licensed contractor acting for the abutting owner may work on a public tree to abate "(1) utility disruption, (2) storm damage, or (3) other hazardous condition that poses an immediate threat to the public health, safety, or welfare." Section 38-16 then requires written notice to the engineering division within two business days. Note that this authorizes maintenance, not removal.
Warren does not license tree services. Chapter 18's fee, insurance and bond schedule at Section 18-18 has no tree, landscaping or arborist category — its only tree entry is a Christmas tree sales lot at 30 dollars — and Section 9-82 registers only electrical, fire alarm and sign trades. So you may hire any tree service for a private tree. Section 38-15(2) does require a "licensed contractor" for hazard work on a public tree, and leaves the term undefined.
Work on a public tree has to meet a national standard. Section 38-5(d): "A person performing work on a public tree shall comply with the ANSI A300 standards, unless they have a written waiver from the department of public service director or designee."
There is no woodlands ordinance and no land-clearing permit in Warren. The only preservation language is site-plan review criteria that never reach a house: zoning Section 10.13 says "Existing trees shall be preserved wherever possible" in multiple-family and mid-rise districts, and Section 4B.03(3) asks condominium site plans to delineate woodland areas.
Building a new house triggers a planting duty, not a removal permit. Section 38-13(c): "A person building a new residential structure shall plant a public tree in the margin area of the property where the new residential structure is located."
The 2025 rewrite came four years after the Sixth Circuit decided F.P. Development v. Charter Township of Canton, and the new chapter contains no fee in lieu, no tree fund and no tree bank. Warren's replacement obligation under Section 38-13(b) runs only against whoever removes a public tree.

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.

— A live contradiction the city has not reconciled. Chapter 38, as rewritten in 2025, puts right-of-way tree authority in the department of public service. Section 33-61, still codified from Ordinance No. 80-557 in 2000, puts it in Parks and Recreation: "Whenever the director of parks and recreation or designate determines... that a tree in the public right-of-way is an obstruction, in a state of disrepair or hazardous to the public health and safety, the director of parks and recreation or designate may order the owner of the property abutting the tree to repair, remove and/or plant a tree... If the city repairs, removes and/or plants a tree, it may charge the expense to the premises and the owner as a special assessment." Both are reported here rather than reconciled, and the special assessment exposure is real. Appeals go to the sidewalk, tree and sewer board of review under Sections 33-62 and 33-68.
— Whether the Urban Forestry Committee has actually adopted the removal standards, prohibited species list and planting guidelines that Section 38-9 requires. They are not published online; the ordinance places them at the Clerk's Office for inspection.
— The fee, if any, for a Section 38-11 permit.
— The application form and process for a Section 38-11 permit. Nothing is published on cityofwarren.org — a site search for "tree" returns the annual tree lighting, the Sidewalk and Tree Board of Review agenda, and a diseased-city-tree report form.
— Which division the Department of Public Service has designated to issue permits. The code leaves it open and the department oversees Building, Public Works, Engineering, Property Maintenance, Rental, Sanitation, Water and Sewer, and the treatment plant.
— What "licensed contractor" means in Section 38-15(2), given that Warren licenses no tree contractors.
— Rules for trees along federal, state or Macomb County roads inside Warren. Section 38-4 expressly carves those out of the margin area definition, so a different agency governs them.

Sources

Who to contact in Warren

Public Service Department, City of Warren (David Muzzarelli, Director). The ordinance says permits issue from "the department of public service or its designated division or department" and does not name the designee.

586-574-4604 (Public Service); 586-759-9270 (Public Works, which does the tree work); 586-759-9300 (Engineering, which receives storm remediation notices); 586-574-4500 (City Hall) dmuzzarelli@cityofwarren.org Official page

One City Square, Suite 320, Warren, MI 48093

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Size threshold

What's protected in Warren

Public tree — "a tree located within a right-of-way or in a public place." Public shrub is defined the same way.

Right-of-way — "a public street (including the sidewalk and margin area) or a public alley."

Margin area, the tree lawn, which Warren says outright is city land — "the city-owned area between the lot line and the street. Margin area does not include the area between the lot line and the street under federal, state, or Macomb County jurisdiction."

Public place — "city-owned property used for a public purpose, including, but not limited to, a park, pool, playground, or public building grounds."

There is no protected species or heritage tree list in the code. Section 38-9(a) directs the Urban Forestry Committee to develop removal standards, a prohibited tree and shrub list and a preferred species list, and Section 38-9(c) files them with the Clerk for public inspection rather than publishing them.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee

No fee is published for the Section 38-11 public tree removal permit, and no city fee schedule covering it was located. The only fee authorization in Chapter 38 is for the separate margin-area landscaping permit, at Section 38-19(d): "By resolution, city council may establish application fees." No such resolution was found. An absent fee is not proof of a free permit.

Penalties

Section 38-25: "A violation of a provision of this chapter is a municipal civil infraction punishable by a fine of up to five hundred dollars ($500.00) per violation, cost not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00), reimbursement to the City for reasonable costs for tree replacement, and other sanctions as provided by MCL 600.8727." Section 38-21 lets the city fix the problem itself after written notice giving ten days to remedy, then "charge a responsible person any reasonable costs the city incurs."

Ordinance

Warren Code of Ordinances Part II, Chapter 38 — Vegetation, cited by Section 38-1 as the "tree and vegetation ordinance." Enacted by Ordinance No. 80-829, Sections 2 through 5, adopted January 28, 2025, published February 12, 2025, effective February 17, 2025. The editor's note records that it "repealed the former Ch. 38, Sections 38-1-38-21, and enacted a new Ch. 38 as set out herein." The same ordinance amended Code Section 1-9(c)(3) to let zoning inspectors write tickets for Chapter 38 violations. Charter authority at Section 3.1(b)(3)(l). Code current through Ordinance No. 80-840, adopted October 28, 2025 (Supp. No. 102).

Worth knowing

The obligation that actually generates letters runs the other way. Section 38-20(10) makes it a violation to do the following: "Failing to remove a severely damaged, diseased, or dead tree located on the person's property." The same list also bars "During the course of construction, failing to take the necessary safeguards to prevent topsoil disturbance out to the dripline, and other damage (including root damage) to public trees or public shrubs in the area."
You cannot prune the street tree either. Section 38-14: "Except as provided in section 38-15, a person shall not perform maintenance on a public tree." Section 38-15(2) is the exception, and it is for hazards only: a licensed contractor acting for the abutting owner may work on a public tree to abate "(1) utility disruption, (2) storm damage, or (3) other hazardous condition that poses an immediate threat to the public health, safety, or welfare." Section 38-16 then requires written notice to the engineering division within two business days. Note that this authorizes maintenance, not removal.
Warren does not license tree services. Chapter 18's fee, insurance and bond schedule at Section 18-18 has no tree, landscaping or arborist category — its only tree entry is a Christmas tree sales lot at 30 dollars — and Section 9-82 registers only electrical, fire alarm and sign trades. So you may hire any tree service for a private tree. Section 38-15(2) does require a "licensed contractor" for hazard work on a public tree, and leaves the term undefined.
Work on a public tree has to meet a national standard. Section 38-5(d): "A person performing work on a public tree shall comply with the ANSI A300 standards, unless they have a written waiver from the department of public service director or designee."
There is no woodlands ordinance and no land-clearing permit in Warren. The only preservation language is site-plan review criteria that never reach a house: zoning Section 10.13 says "Existing trees shall be preserved wherever possible" in multiple-family and mid-rise districts, and Section 4B.03(3) asks condominium site plans to delineate woodland areas.
Building a new house triggers a planting duty, not a removal permit. Section 38-13(c): "A person building a new residential structure shall plant a public tree in the margin area of the property where the new residential structure is located."
The 2025 rewrite came four years after the Sixth Circuit decided F.P. Development v. Charter Township of Canton, and the new chapter contains no fee in lieu, no tree fund and no tree bank. Warren's replacement obligation under Section 38-13(b) runs only against whoever removes a public tree.

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.

— A live contradiction the city has not reconciled. Chapter 38, as rewritten in 2025, puts right-of-way tree authority in the department of public service. Section 33-61, still codified from Ordinance No. 80-557 in 2000, puts it in Parks and Recreation: "Whenever the director of parks and recreation or designate determines... that a tree in the public right-of-way is an obstruction, in a state of disrepair or hazardous to the public health and safety, the director of parks and recreation or designate may order the owner of the property abutting the tree to repair, remove and/or plant a tree... If the city repairs, removes and/or plants a tree, it may charge the expense to the premises and the owner as a special assessment." Both are reported here rather than reconciled, and the special assessment exposure is real. Appeals go to the sidewalk, tree and sewer board of review under Sections 33-62 and 33-68.
— Whether the Urban Forestry Committee has actually adopted the removal standards, prohibited species list and planting guidelines that Section 38-9 requires. They are not published online; the ordinance places them at the Clerk's Office for inspection.
— The fee, if any, for a Section 38-11 permit.
— The application form and process for a Section 38-11 permit. Nothing is published on cityofwarren.org — a site search for "tree" returns the annual tree lighting, the Sidewalk and Tree Board of Review agenda, and a diseased-city-tree report form.
— Which division the Department of Public Service has designated to issue permits. The code leaves it open and the department oversees Building, Public Works, Engineering, Property Maintenance, Rental, Sanitation, Water and Sewer, and the treatment plant.
— What "licensed contractor" means in Section 38-15(2), given that Warren licenses no tree contractors.
— Rules for trees along federal, state or Macomb County roads inside Warren. Section 38-4 expressly carves those out of the margin area definition, so a different agency governs them.