Tree Removal in Oakland Park, FL

Tree Removal in Oakland Park comes with a published fee schedule, which is helpful for planning. The city's Tree Removal & Relocation Permit application lists a $31.00 application fee, plus $15.00 per tree under 18 inches in diameter or $50.00 per tree over 18 inches, and a 10% training and certification fee. Fees double for after-the-fact removals. Trees cannot be removed before the city's Code Officer inspects them.

Specimen trees and canopy

Oakland Park measures trees at breast height, 4 feet 6 inches above grade, and anything 18 inches or more is a specimen tree. Specimen trees carry the heaviest replacement obligation: their ISA appraisal value has to be replaced dollar for dollar through new trees planted on site, a payment to the city's Tree Preservation and Replacement Trust Fund, or both. For developed single-family and duplex lots with non-specimen trees, the requirement is simpler: replace with the number of 10-foot by 6-foot Florida Grade No. 1 shade trees the land development code calls for.

Before you plan a removal of a large tree, it's worth knowing which side of 18 inches it falls on. We measure every tree we quote here.

Trees the city doesn't regulate

The permit isn't required for six exempt species: Brazilian pepper (Florida holly), poisonwood, Australian pine, melaleuca, Norfolk Island pine and schefflera. Several of these are invasive and brittle, and taking them out is often the first step in making a yard safer.

A city shaped by the 1926 storm

Oakland Park began as the Colohatchee settlement and was incorporated as the Town of Floranada, a blend of Florida and Canada, in November 1925. The 1926 Miami hurricane pushed the new town into bankruptcy, and it reincorporated as Oakland Park in 1929. Most growth came after World War II; the population went from 1,295 to 16,261 during the 1950s and 1960s. That makes many homes and yard trees 60 to 70 years old, a common age for decay and structural failure in big shade trees.

Common Oakland Park jobs

• Specimen-size shade tree removals on postwar lots
• Removing exempt invasives like Australian pine and Brazilian pepper
• Taking down trees along the Middle River's north fork and canals
• Clearing trees near the FEC rail corridor and Dixie Highway commercial lots
• Stump grinding and replacement-ready cleanup

Rules for multi-family and commercial lots

For properties other than developed single-family and duplex lots, Oakland Park replaces removed canopy using credits. A 16-by-8-foot replacement tree earns 525 square feet of canopy, a 14-by-7 tree 400 square feet, a 12-by-6 tree 300 and a 10-by-6 tree 225. On vacant land, the removed canopy is increased by 50% when the requirement is calculated. Replacement has to be on site unless a combination is used, with any balance paid to the trust fund at $1.00 per square foot. A site plan showing tree locations is required for multi-family, commercial and industrial applications.

Call (954) 314-3415 or send the form. We'll measure the tree, tell you whether it's specimen size and give you a written estimate. Get a free estimate