We love trees here in the city of Wellington, and we are committed to helping build and maintain our urban forest. Trees provide shade, homes for wildlife, water drainage, soil erosion protection, and many other benefits to our city.
Please select what you’d like to do:
I want to plant a tree in my front or back yard
I want to plant a tree through the Wellington tree program (Front yard or in front easement between street and sidewalk)
I want to plant a street tree myself in my front easement (between street and sidewalk)
I want to remove a tree from my yard
I want to remove a street tree from my front easement
To plant a tree in your front or back yard
Residents are encouraged to plant trees in the front or back yard, whenever they wish. No permit or city involvement is needed. Thank you for helping improve our neighborhood tree canopy!
If you want to plant a "street tree" between the sidewalk and street (in the easement), your tree must be on the approved list, and you must file a (free) city permit. CLICK HERE to find out more about how to submit a permit.
To plant a tree through the city's tree program
The city’s tree program specifically provides discounted approved trees and planting services for front yards and for front easements.
The City takes care of permitting, arborist approval for type and placement of trees, purchase and delivery of trees, and planting. Applications for the tree program typically open in late summer or early fall, and planting occurs during the winter/spring months, as suggested by the arborist.
Property owners pay a small fee to the city for this service, and will be responsible for watering the tree weekly in the warm months for the first few years, to ensure it grows strong and healthy.
To plant a street tree in a front easement (between street and sidewalk)
If you want to plant an approved tree in your front easement/right of way (the area between the street and sidewalk) you can at any time, and at your own expense. First, you must file a free tree permit through the city.
Step 1: Choose your tree. There are two categories of approved trees, sorted by height.
The city only allows planting of these tree types in easements for the sake of visibility, and to encourage maximum shade canopy on our streets.
We recommend you choose one tree from Group A and one from Group B, and our arborist will decide which tree is appropriate for your space. Please note that if you request a tree that isn’t on the approved list, the permit will not be approved.
- Approved Street Trees List: https://louisvilleky.gov/sites/default/files/2022-10/STREETSHORTLIST_9.8.22%20%281%29.pdf
Step 2: Download and fill out our Street Tree Permit:
Use the format easiest for you.
Step 3: Call 811, and ask them to come out and mark your easement for utility lines. Once that is completed, take a photo of your marked easement, and keep your confirmation from 811 on hand.
Step 4: Send an email with these three items to the city’s Tree Program Commissioner:
- Your filled out permit
- Your marked easement photo
- And the confirmation sent to you by 811
Contact information for the commissioner in charge of the tree program can be found on our City Commission Page here. https://cityofwellingtonky.com/city-council/
Accepted formats for the permit are PDF, word doc, or sending a photo or scan of your filled out form. The tree program commissioner is happy to help you with this, if you need it. Please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Step 5: The commissioner will contact our arborist to come out and mark the place where your requested tree should be planted. This can take up to a month, as our arborist is only available monthly.
Once the arborist has confirmed which of your two requested tree types is appropriate for the space, and will thrive without compromising utility lines, the tree commissioner will contact you with a signed and approved permit from the city.
Step 6: Plant your tree!
To remove a tree from your yard
No permit is needed, proceed whenever you wish.
To remove a street tree from your front easement
If you are removing or replacing a “street tree” from your easement/right of way that is at least 15 feet in height, you must immediately remove all debris related to the tree and stump removal. All tree stumps 6 or more inches in diameter must be completely ground out. Stumps less than 6 inches should be removed or cut to ground level. If a hole is left by a stump, it must be filled in with topsoil to ground level. Lawn areas must be re-seeded or re-planted within 120 days.
The property owner or person removing a tree(s) is responsible for ensuring that no damage is caused to the drainage, sidewalk, curb, or street by the tree removal process.
If you have more questions, please contact the tree program commissioner.
Contact information for commissioners can be found here: https://cityofwellingtonky.com/city-council/
If you’d like to read the city’s tree ordinance, you can do so here:
Ordinance 3 2025-2026, An Amendment to Section 91.31 (B) Planting Trees in Right of Way