Tree Removal Permits in Westlake
Westlake puts a number on how much of a tree may be pruned in a year. Section 107-114 allows a maximum of one fourth of tree canopy to be removed from a tree within a one year period. The limit is written per tree and per year, so on a property serviced through the year it is a cumulative allowance rather than a per visit one. TWQ Landscaping prepares and files these applications, and our ISA Certified Arborist (NY-6948A) produces the supporting report where one is required.
Does This Apply to Your Property?
The pruning standard is written about the tree rather than about the owner. A commercial site, an association common area, a condominium parcel and an institutional campus are read against the same one fourth limit. Section 14-63, the maintenance provision, is written for residential and commercial property alike. The two Palm Beach County articles we read do not create a general permit to remove an ordinary tree, so on a removal in Westlake the city rule is the one that governs. A separate county obligation does reach inside city limits: the countywide invasive non-native vegetation ordinance applies in incorporated areas except where a municipal ordinance conflicts, and our Palm Beach County guide sets out what it requires.
The residential position is set by state law rather than by the chapter. Florida Statutes Section 163.045 remains available for a detached single-family residence, on documentation from an ISA certified arborist or a Florida licensed landscape architect. We searched the Westlake tree and landscape chapters and found nothing that treats single-family property differently. The city is worth a call before relying on that for a house.
What Needs a Permit
Chapter 107, Landscaping and Buffers, is where Westlake sets its tree rules, and what it establishes is how trees are pruned and what may be planted. Section 107-114 governs pruning. Section 107-3 fixes the planting specifications and the definitions. Whether a removal on your property also needs a permit from Westlake is the question to put to the city before work is scheduled. Westlake incorporated in 2016, and its land development regulations may still be developing.
One application requirement is already defined in the code. A tree survey means a drawing certified by a land surveyor, engineer, or landscape architect registered in the state, as to the location and size of trees. The certification comes from one of those three professionals rather than from the crew doing the work, so it is arranged ahead of the filing. Confirm the rest of the application package with the city.
The canopy maximum carries conditions of its own. Removal of up to one fourth is allowed where the work conforms to the standards of crown reduction, crown cleaning, crown thinning, crown raising, vista pruning and crown restoration pruning techniques. Pruning is permitted to allow for healthy growth and to promote safety considerations. A conflict with views, signage or lighting does not lift the ceiling, because trees causing such a conflict shall not be pruned more than the maximum allowed.
Shaping a tree is allowed, and it comes with paperwork. If other than the mature height and spread is desired for any required tree, the size and shape shall be indicated on an approved landscape plan. Shaping is permitted where the tree is used as an accent, as a focal point, or as part of an overall landscape design. A maintenance commitment shall be clearly outlined on that approved plan, explaining the care and upkeep of the shaped tree.
What It Costs
What decides a budget in Westlake is the pace the pruning standard sets, rather than a filing fee. One fourth of a tree's canopy in a one year period is the ceiling. A reduction larger than that is taken across more than one year, and quoted that way. Any permit fee comes from the city fee schedule, and we obtain the current amount from Westlake before it goes into a budget. Where an application calls for a tree survey, that certified drawing is a professional cost of its own.
Two obligations run past the day the work is done. Grasses, weeds and uncultivated vegetation shall not exceed eight inches in height on improved property, including the area between the edge of the pavement in the street and the lot line. The swale is inside the area that standard covers, so a scope written to the lot line leaves that strip to the owner. A shaped tree then carries its own maintenance commitment, recorded on the approved landscape plan as care and upkeep.
What Happens If It Is Done Without a Permit
Section 14-63 is where the duty on standing vegetation sits. The owner of any premises shall trim trees, plants, shrubs or vegetation which overhang any sidewalk, alley or street, as determined by the building official. The duty also reaches growth which interferes with the use of a sidewalk, alley, street, poles, wires, pipes or fixtures in the right of way. A dense growth of trees, vines, underbrush, weeds or wild growth is separately a nuisance. So is vegetation constituting a fire hazard or a menace to public health, safety or welfare.
One sentence in that section changes how a hazard claim is proved. A finding that a tree is in danger of falling upon an adjacent lot or street is prima facie evidence of a violation. The finding comes from a registered forester or certified arborist employed by the city, and it covers death, disease or damage, including damage caused by weather conditions. It establishes the violation on its face, and the owner is the party who has to answer it. We confirm with the city what a violation of Section 14-63 carries.
What to Check With Your Contractor
Three things bind the crew rather than the paperwork. All pruning shall comply with the American National Standards Institute ANSI 300 standards for tree, shrub and other woody plant maintenance, as amended. Hatracking, which the code names as tree topping, and lion-tailing are strictly prohibited as defined in the chapter. Lion-tailing is the stripping of interior foliage so that growth is left only at the branch ends, and it is prohibited here by name.
The planting specifications double as maintenance targets. A canopy tree used as a street tree must maintain eight feet of clearance over any sidewalk, and that is the figure to prune to on a Westlake street tree. Canopy trees are species achieving a mature spread of at least 15 feet. Palms and specimen palms go in with a minimum of eight feet of clear trunk. Ornamental palms run six to ten feet in mature height, and ornamental trees ten feet in height with a spread of at least four feet.
What to Do Next
Settle four things before work is scheduled in Westlake. Whether the removal you have in mind needs a permit from the city, and what the application package contains. How much of each tree's yearly canopy allowance the year's earlier visits have already used. Whether any tree in scope is a shaped tree carrying a commitment on an approved landscape plan. And whether the maintained area in your contract reaches the edge of the pavement.
We settle those before quoting. We inspect the trees, record species, size and condition, prepare the arborist report where the application calls for one, obtain the fee schedule from the city, and file the permit. TWQ Landscaping handles tree permitting for the properties we maintain across Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade: community associations and condominiums, cooperative and master associations, commercial and industrial sites, medical and senior living campuses, schools, religious campuses, hotels, multifamily rental, self-storage, marinas, mobile home and RV parks, municipal grounds and mixed-use. Call (954) 583-4752 or request a proposal.
The information presented on this page was accurate as of 23 August 2026.
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