Do you need a permit?
No permit required for most private trees
York has no tree removal permit for private property, and no diameter threshold. Article 913 of the codified ordinances covers trees in public places, and its only demands on a private owner run the other way — you must trim a tree that overhangs the sidewalk or street, and you must remove a tree or limb that has become likely to fall across a public way. The street tree in the right-of-way is different: the 2026 Planning and Zoning Code says street trees "must not be removed without approval" and puts the proposal in front of the City Forester first.
What's protected in York
- Trees and shrubs planted in any public place. Section 913.01: "No person shall injure any tree or shrub planted in any public place."
- Street trees in the public right-of-way. Zoning section 1305.08(d): "All street trees within a public right-of-way must not be removed without approval ... Prior to the removal or replacement of any street tree, the proposal is subject to review by the City Forester."
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Penalties
- Section 913.99: "Whoever violates or fails to comply with any of the provisions of this article shall upon conviction thereof be fined not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) and costs of prosecution, and in default of payment thereof shall be imprisoned for not more than ten days. A separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. The costs of any pruning or trimming done on private property as required in this section by the City through staff or contract shall get billed to the property owner or shall appear as a lien against the property in the same manner as municipal claims are filed and collected."
- Ordinance
- Codified Ordinances of York, Part Nine (Streets, Utilities and Public Services Code), Title One, Article 913 — Trees and Vegetation, sections 913.01 through 913.99. Substantially enacted by Ord. 14-1970; section 913.03(a) amended by Ord. 5-1995, passed 4-18-95; the penalty at section 913.99 by Ord. 1-2009, passed 1-6-09. Street tree removal approval is at Part Thirteen (Planning and Zoning Code), Title One, section 1305.08(d), in the 2026 Replacement of the code, updated 6-23-2026. The article cross-references the Third Class City Code at 53 P.S. section 37403(18) for the city's shade tree authority.
Worth knowing
- What Article 913 actually asks of a homeowner is maintenance, not permission. Section 913.03(a) requires trees or shrubs overhanging a sidewalk, street or public place to be trimmed by the abutting owner "to a height of a minimum of fourteen feet above the roadway and eight feet above the sidewalk."
- Section 913.03(b) is a removal duty, not a restriction: "Any tree or limb of a tree which has become likely to fall on or across any public way or place, shall be removed by the owner of the premises on which such tree grows or stands." If you neglect a written notice from the Director of Community Development, the city does the work, bills you, and liens the property.
- You are affirmatively allowed to plant. Section 913.09: "Property owners are permitted to plant trees for shade along the streets or lines of pavements in front of such property not exceeding three trees to the half lot."
- Section 913.05(e) gives you a say when a utility wants to prune: "Owners of properties on which trees and shrubs to be pruned are located shall be contacted prior to pruning and granted the privilege to have the trees and shrubs pruned by a tree expert, of their choice, at the owner's expense."
- New building work brings a planting obligation. Zoning section 1305.08(c)(2): "All applications for new residential building construction or substantial improvements to existing residences shall require the installation of street trees," one per lot frontage at a minimum caliper of 1.5 inches, no closer than 20 feet to a sewer lateral, and from the City Forester's approved species list.
- Zoning section 1305.09(a)(1) puts the maintenance duty on the owner and points back to Article 913 for clearance heights.
- The subdivision code's tree conservation clause is development-only: "Where existing trees are located in a development plan, they shall be preserved wherever possible."
- York does not list a Shade Tree Commission among its authorities, boards and commissions. The code and the zoning ordinance both refer to a City Forester instead.
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 application form, process, fee and turnaround time for street tree removal approval. Zoning section 1305.08(d) requires City Forester review but the city publishes no form or procedure for it.
- — Which office fields street tree questions day to day. The zoning code names the City Forester; the city website does not publish a City Forester contact, so the Public Works main line at (717) 849-2245 is the starting point.
- — Whether York requires tree contractors to be licensed or registered with the city.
- — Article 913 has not been substantively amended since 2009 and the code page carries no codification banner, so we cannot confirm a "current through" date for Part Nine. The Planning and Zoning Code is dated as a 2026 Replacement updated 6-23-2026.
- — Whether any York zoning overlay restricts clearing near the Codorus Creek. We reviewed the Planning and Zoning Code and found floodplain consultation requirements tied to subdivision and development, but no standalone riparian tree restriction.