Indian Rocks Beach Tree Permits: Homeowner and Development Guide
Last reviewed October 2, 2026. Next review due April 2, 2027. By Forest, Property Intelligence Specialist, Ken's Tree Service.
Do you need a tree removal permit in Indian Rocks Beach?
Indian Rocks Beach calls its application a Tree Permit Application, and the city, rather than Pinellas County, issues the ordinary city tree-removal permit, subject to the species exceptions, mangrove route and qualifying state-law protection explained in this guide. (Section 106-33; Tree Permit Application (PDF)) Send the city application and tree-location sketch to the Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department for its determination. (Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department) Our city-or-county tree-permit guide helps frame that jurisdiction question.
What is the ordinance trying to preserve?
The city regulates removal and activities detrimental to protected vegetation on developed and undeveloped sites, requires construction protection, and allows occupancy, permits and inspections to be withheld until compliance. (Section 106-55; Section 106-48(b); Section 106-47) This is a protection and review system, not simply a form to complete before cutting.
Why county rules still matter
Section 106-33 incorporates the county Habitat Management Ordinance, including later changes, only for tree matters “not covered herein,” while expressly retaining city tree permits and county mangrove regulation. (Section 106-33) The current county successors are Chapter 166, Article II for habitat protection and Chapter 58, Article XIX, Sections 58-807 through 58-814 for tree protection; current Section 166-81(c) expressly routes tree-removal permits to Chapter 58. (Pinellas County Code, Chapter 166) Both county applicability provisions reach incorporated areas but say municipal ordinances prevail where they conflict. (Pinellas County Code, Chapter 58, Article XIX)
Consequently, the county's homestead threshold of greater than 24 inches and its broader palm coverage do not replace the city's four-inch rule and cabbage-palm-only definition where those texts conflict. (Pinellas County Code, Chapter 58, Article XIX; Section 106-55; Section 106-31) Likewise, the city expressly addresses its permit fee, replacement, construction protection and buffers; Section 106-33 is not a blanket instruction to substitute county fees or county replacement tables for those city rules. (Section 106-33; Section 15-22; Section 106-57; Section 106-48(a); Section 106-49(b)) Uncovered tree-related matters still require review against the county provisions, including application information, evaluation and permit conditions, while county-maintained rights-of-way and delegated mangrove regulation retain their separate routes. (Pinellas County Code, Chapter 166; FDEP mangrove delegation list) Ask which supplemental county provisions the city applies; neither the incorporation clause nor current form reconciles them section by section. (Tree Permit Application (PDF))
Which trees and activities are protected?
Section 106-55 requires a permit to “remove, effectively remove, or relocate a tree with a trunk diameter of four-inch dbh or greater,” subject to the species exceptions, emergency authorization and qualifying state-law protection described in this guide. (Section 106-55) The same section also reaches development activity, vegetation removal in upland buffers or preservation areas, preliminary clearing or grubbing, removal or pruning of wetlands, specimen trees or stands and historic trees, and activities detrimental to protected vegetation. Article II states no dead-tree exception to Section 106-55's trigger; its other exemptions and authorization routes still require separate consideration. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances)
“Tree” means a self-supporting woody plant normally reaching at least 15 feet in the city, with mangroves of any size and replant or landscape trees included. (Section 106-31) The cabbage palm is the only palm treated as a tree under Article II; all other palm species are excluded from that article's tree definition, but Article III landscaping requirements expressly include palms. (Section 106-111(1))
For a tree under four inches DBH, Section 106-55's ordinary size trigger is not met, but Section 15-22's “any tree” language and the special categories prevent a blanket no-permit answer. (Section 106-55; Section 15-22) Ask the city to reconcile those sections before work.
Specimen trees, stands and historic trees
The specimen definition includes these sizes only for a tree in fair or better condition; smaller exceptional, rare, historically significant or project-focal-point trees can also qualify. (Section 106-31)
Specimen category | Minimum DBH |
|---|---|
Large hardwoods, such as oaks and hickories | 36 inches. (Section 106-31) |
Large softwoods, such as pines, cypress and cedars | 20 inches. (Section 106-31) |
Fair-or-better condition requires life expectancy greater than 15 years, a relatively sound solid trunk without extensive decay or hollow and with less than 20 percent radial dieback, no more than one major and several minor dead limbs for hardwoods, and no major insect or pathological problem. (Section 106-31) A specimen stand requires professional determination of high aesthetic or ecological value under the listed maturity, species, history, aesthetics or habitat criteria. A historic tree requires a suitable professional's finding of notable historic interest plus official designation promulgated in the city's records. Section 106-56(3) prohibits removing, trimming, pruning or altering a designated specimen tree, specimen stand or historic tree without a permit, subject to any applicable state-law protection. (Section 106-56(3))
How do you measure the tree?
The city measures DBH at 4.5 feet above natural grade and adds the diameters of multiple trunks together. (Section 106-31) For a single trunk, circumference at that height divided by 3.14 gives approximate diameter; four inches DBH corresponds to approximately 12.56 inches circumference. (Pinellas County tree-code measurement guide) The calculation does not establish an exemption.
Do not confuse DBH with replant caliper: the city defines caliper at six inches above the soil line, while Article III's general landscape-tree standard specifically measures its two-inch planting caliper at 12 inches above ground. (Section 106-31; Section 106-111(2)a)
What changes for dead, diseased or emergency trees?
Article II states no exception for a dead or diseased tree to Section 106-55's permit trigger, and Section 15-22 says removal of any tree requires a permit; applicable species exemptions, city authorization and qualifying state-law protection remain separate routes. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-55; Section 15-22)
Section 106-44(b) requires removal after a city-approved arborist's determination and written city notice, ordinarily within 60 days; the city manager may extend the deadline for good-faith compliance and good cause. (Section 106-44(b)) The same subsection permits city removal when the additional immediate-threat or infestation findings are made and the owner fails to act within the notice period, with actual documented city-removal costs assessed on the owner's property-tax notice. Section 106-45(a) separately allows city verbal authorization when the city determines a hazard requires immediate removal. (Section 106-45(a))
During hurricanes, windstorms, floods, freezes or other disasters, the city may waive Article II requirements for a specified period, not indefinitely. (Section 106-45(b)) The infrastructure and public-health exception in Section 106-33 also mentions trees that may become injurious to sewer or water systems, drainage facilities or public health and safety; do not substitute your own hazard finding for the separate city authorization or state-documentation routes. (Section 106-33)
Does pruning a private tree need a permit?
Pruning a private tree can require a permit when it effectively removes a covered tree, affects protected wetlands, specimen trees or stands or historic trees, or otherwise harms protected vegetation; the city defines effective removal as pruning that severely alters a plant's natural function. (Section 106-55; Section 106-31) This guide does not treat ordinary pruning as categorically exempt, because the same section also broadly includes development activity and the definition of development includes lawn and ancillary-vegetation maintenance.
Top pruning or severe maintenance of required landscape or replant material that causes stunted, abnormal or otherwise unreasonable growth is treated as destruction, requiring replacement rather than simply an ordinary pruning approval. (Section 106-54) For street trees, park trees and other public-property trees, normal-practice topping is unlawful, defined as severe cutting to stubs larger than three inches that removes the normal canopy and disfigures the tree; storm damage or utility obstructions can support an exemption only at the city manager's determination. (Section 106-42) Owners of trees overhanging rights-of-way must preserve streetlight and intersection visibility, maintain eight feet of sidewalk clearance, and remove dangerous trees or limbs that menace public safety. (Section 106-43(a))
Mangroves and wetland vegetation
Wetland vegetation cannot be removed, trimmed, pruned, chemically treated, filled upon or altered without a permit or exemption. (Section 106-56) A Pinellas County Water and Navigation permit approving wetland removal removes the additional city permit requirement only for the wetland removal it authorizes; unauthorized removal otherwise subject to county jurisdiction remains subject to county enforcement. Wetlands are exempt from individual tree-survey requirements but must be named and have their boundaries surveyed.
Pinellas County regulates mangrove trimming under FDEP delegation authorized by Florida Statute 403.9324, and FDEP lists the county contact as 727-453-3385. (FDEP mangrove delegation list) Use the county mangrove guidance for that separate route, not the ordinary city tree application.
Which invasive or undesirable species are exempt?
The city's invasive-species rules distinguish removal, “effective removal” and permits without fees; conservation-easement and regulated-wetland exceptions also matter, so “no fee” does not mean “no permit.” (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(1))
Section 106-52(1) says “Effective removal of these trees, however, shall not require a permit”, subject to its protected-location exception, while Section 106-31 defines effective removal as trimming or pruning that severely alters natural function. (Section 106-52(1); Section 106-31) This is a defined-term defect, not an unqualified removal exemption: Section 106-33 separately exempts removal of those species, leaving protected locations as the practical difference. (Section 106-33)
Species | Section 106-33 | Section 106-52 |
|---|---|---|
Punk tree or melaleuca | No city permit for removal stated. | Paragraph (1) exempts “effective removal,” not removal generally; designated conservation easements and wetlands regulated under Florida Statutes Chapters 373 and 403 require a city-approved removal plan. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(1); Section 106-31) |
Brazilian pepper | No city permit for removal stated. | Paragraph (1): same “effective removal” wording and protected-location exception. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(1); Section 106-31) |
Chinese tallow | No city permit for removal stated. | Paragraph (1): same “effective removal” wording and protected-location exception. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(1); Section 106-31) |
Australian pine | No city permit stated. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Ear tree | No city permit stated. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Eucalyptus | No city permit stated. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Chinaberry | No city permit stated. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Citrus | Not in its named list. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Silk oak | Not in its named list. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Java plum | Not in its named list. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Carrotwood | Not in its named list. | Paragraph (2): permits with no fee. (Section 106-33; Section 106-52(2)) |
Section 106-33 prints “punk trees (Melalenca lencodendin)” and “Brazilian pepper trees (Schinum terebinthifolius)”; those spellings are not botanical corrections. (Section 106-33) Section 106-52(1) requires development sites to be cleared of its three listed species to the most reasonable extent possible, with restabilization where removal creates erosion potential. (Section 106-52(1)) Section 106-44(a) separately prohibits selling or planting state-designated noxious trees, including its listed Australian pine, Brazilian pepper, Chinese tallow, melaleuca, chinaberry, carrotwood, lead tree and catclaw mimosa. (Section 106-44(a)) Obtain the city's interpretation for conflicting species language and protected locations.
Who may apply?
The current tree form provides fields for the owner and an “Applicant with Authorization Letter,” so an association or company representative should use the authorization route rather than assume a contractor's signature is sufficient. (Tree Permit Application (PDF)) Article II's definition of person includes landowners, lessees, contractors, developers, corporations and their agents, but that definition does not replace the form's owner-authorization requirement. (Section 106-31) PUD signatures follow Section 110-647(2)'s owner, agent and corporate requirements. (Section 110-647(2))
When does Florida Statute 163.045 apply?
Florida Statute 163.045 protects qualifying residential tree work only when the owner possesses the required signed onsite assessment finding unacceptable risk under the statute's test; it is not a blanket exemption for unhealthy trees, commercial property, multifamily property or HOA common areas. (Florida Statute 163.045)
Property: A single-family detached building on a lot actively used for single-family residential purposes, as a conforming or legally recognized nonconforming use under the jurisdiction's land-development regulations. (Florida Statute 163.045)
Documentation: An onsite assessment performed and signed by an ISA-certified arborist or Florida licensed landscape architect using Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017). (Florida Statute 163.045)
Risk test: Removal must be the only means of practically mitigating risk below moderate under that named standard, and the owner must possess the documentation. (Florida Statute 163.045)
Local restrictions: When those conditions are satisfied, local government may not require notice, application, approval, permit, fee or mitigation for pruning, trimming or removal, and may not require replanting. (Florida Statute 163.045)
Mangroves: The statute does not apply to specifically delegated mangrove-protection authority. (Florida Statute 163.045)
The 2022 amendment took effect July 1, 2022. (Florida Senate CS/SB 518 (2022)) The deciding authority and signing professional must address property-specific qualification.
What are the penalties and enforcement remedies?
Tree violations can involve general penalties, administrative enforcement and civil restoration damages, not just the cost of an application. (Section 106-45(c); Section 106-46) Section 1-14(a), where no specific penalty is provided, sets a maximum $500 fine, 60 days' imprisonment or both, and subsection (b) makes each continuing day a separate offense. (Section 1-14(a)) The special-magistrate route permits up to $250 per day for a first violation, $500 per day for a repeat violation, or $5,000 per irreparable or irreversible violation, subject to the findings and procedures in Section 2-278. (Section 2-278(b)(1)) The general $500 and 60-day limits were also enacted in Ordinance 2002-14, Section 4. (Ordinance 2002-14, Section 4)
That ordinance became effective October 22, 2002; historical effective dates of the separate administrative amounts were not established. (Ordinance 2002-14, Section 7)
Civil tree valuation under Section 106-46 can use inch-for-inch DBH replacement, the International Society of Arboriculture shade-tree formula, or another professionally accepted method. (Section 106-46(1)) The city may require the applicable replants plus payment of valuation in replanted or transferred trees, money, or both; this is a violation remedy, not a published routine removal buyout price. Recorded administrative orders can become liens, with foreclosure or a money-judgment action after three unpaid months, subject to the homestead protections stated in Section 2-278(c). (Section 2-278(c)) Section 106-58 authorizes cease-and-desist orders for missing required permits, fraud, misrepresentation, violated permit conditions or other good cause, and requires immediate compliance. (Section 106-58)
What replacement trees can the city require?
For permits providing for development or construction, Section 106-57 calls for practical relocation, replacement up to inch-for-inch, or the replant guideline, with the actual number adjusted for size, species, planting location, existing trees, available open space and other applicable requirements. (Section 106-57) The state-law route described earlier prohibits local replanting requirements when work qualifies under Florida Statute 163.045. (Florida Statute 163.045)
City replant rule | Requirement or credit |
|---|---|
Site-area guideline | One replant per 1,500 square feet or fraction. (Section 106-57) |
Ordinary Article II replant | Approved-list species, at least 1.5-inch caliper and six feet tall, Florida nursery Grade No. 1 or better, unless the city manager approves otherwise. (Section 106-31) |
Existing trees | Count when size, species, quality and location meet replant standards. (Section 106-57) |
Trees in buffers, upland preservation areas or wetlands | Do not count toward the replant requirement. (Section 106-57) |
Replants need compatible soil, canopy space and locations protecting utilities and sidewalks; planting or maintenance failures are per-tree violations. (Section 106-57) Required material under Article II must be maintained healthy or replaced within 30 days, whereas Article III allows 60 days after landscape material dies and six months after a natural disaster destroys over half the trees on the affected property. (Section 106-54; Section 106-113(c)) Those overlapping replacement deadlines should be resolved with the city for material required under both articles. With owner permission and an agreed schedule, the city may relocate a permitted-removal tree to city property at city expense and no owner liability, not as an automatic buyout.
What changes for commercial, multifamily, HOA and institutional property?
The Article II permit trigger applies to any developed or undeveloped site, and the code establishes no separate nonresidential tree-permit charge. (Section 106-55; Section 15-22; Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances) The single-family residential definition in Florida Statute 163.045 does not extend that protection to an HOA common area, institutional site, commercial parcel or multifamily building merely because residents use it. (Florida Statute 163.045)
If you manage existing property with an approved landscape plan, the owner must maintain it, and city staff are directed to check approved landscape and planting plans annually. (Section 106-113(b)) A landscaped area cannot be abandoned, paved or otherwise used without a grounds permit, and zoning-required landscaping must be maintained and dead landscaping replaced. (Section 110-181) For a proposed tree change, submit the approved plan and ask whether the change requires a grounds permit or site-plan amendment; Section 15-21 expressly charges for amendments and penalizes unauthorized plan departures, clearing and land alteration. (Section 15-21(4))
Development, demolition, additions, pools and clearing
If you are building a pool, demolishing a structure, adding an improvement or clearing a site, the Article II development definition covers structure and impervious-surface work, vegetation disturbance and soil disturbance, not only removal of a large tree. (Section 106-31) The city's current procedure calls for city review before county building submission for new construction and additions, and zoning and flood information for pools and certain other work. (Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department) Multifamily and nonresidential development or redevelopment needs a site-development plan showing landscaping and other site elements, with occupancy tied to approved facilities; the site-plan approval lasts six months. (Section 110-81(a))
Article III excludes vehicular areas within buildings and single-family/two-family uses; additions, repaving and resurfacing require practical compliance as determined by the building official. (Section 106-72(a)) For covered projects, Section 106-91 governs the predevelopment grounds permit, landscaping-plan/construction-plan coordination and completion certification before new-structure occupancy. (Section 106-91(a))
What development details are not specified in the city code?
Whole-code searches found these limits; permit conditions and applicable county provisions remain:
Nonresidential tree fee: No separate charge is stated; Section 15-22 sets no fee for a tree permit. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 15-22)
Routine fee-in-lieu: None was found for permitted nonresidential removal; the upland-preservation donation and violation payment are not routine removal fee-in-lieu. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-50(b)(2); Section 106-46(2))
Root pruning: No separately stated root-pruning procedure was found; protected-vegetation damage and construction restrictions still apply. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-55; Section 106-48(a))
Prework barrier inspection: No expressly required inspection of tree barriers before work starts was found; barriers must nevertheless be erected before development. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-48(b))
Tree bank or fund: No named city program was found; county incorporation remains a separate question. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-33)
Initial replacement deadline: No uniform post-removal day count was found; permit conditions and grounds-certification/occupancy requirements apply, distinct from dead-material deadlines. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances; Section 106-91(e); Section 106-47; Section 106-54; Section 106-113(c))
What plans and credentials are required?
Tree-location plan: Section 15-22 requires the target trees' locations and species, and the application calls for an attached location sketch. (Section 15-22; Tree Permit Application (PDF))
Tree survey: The city definition uses a maximum scale of one inch equals 50 feet, accurate locations, common names and each tree's DBH. (Section 106-31)
Chapter 106 plans: Section 106-59 says plans must be prepared by individuals authorized under Florida Statutes Chapter 481; it does not say every homeowner sketch must be signed by an ISA-certified arborist. (Section 106-59)
Vehicular landscaping: Section 106-91 requires three copies of the combined plan and specifies a minimum scale of one inch equals 30 feet, dimensions, existing and proposed trees, planting sizes and species, grading, drainage and the other listed contents. (Section 106-91(b))
Right-of-way landscape interface: Section 106-114 specifically requires a plan prepared by a licensed landscape architect. (Section 106-114)
Larger clearing sites: Section 106-56(5) says sites of one acre or more cannot receive the habitat-management permit until the NPDES Generic Permit Notice of Intent, DEP Form 62-621.300(4)(b), or its amendment, is submitted. (Section 106-56(5))
Listed species: Section 106-51 requires written comments and recommendations from the appropriate state or federal agency after field review identifies listed species, and permits additional preservation or development limits. (Section 106-51)
These are government requirements, not Ken's Tree Service credentials.
Construction protection and preservation
Before development, protect vegetation with substantial barriers and placards identifying their purpose and unauthorized-removal penalties; retain them until city authorization or completion of final grading and ground cover, obtain approval for vegetation removal inside barriers, and attach no wires to protected vegetation during construction. (Section 106-48(b)) Solvents, construction materials, machinery and temporary soil deposits must stay at least six feet or two-thirds of the dripline, whichever is greater, from trees at least four inches DBH, and six feet from other protected vegetation. The city may require special designs such as tree wells, aeration or stem walls, and erosion barriers where siltation could damage protected vegetation. (Section 106-57(1))
Wetland category | City upland buffer |
|---|---|
Isolated wetland | 15 feet. (Section 106-49(b)) |
Connected creek, channel, ditch, canal or other waterway not designated preservation land use | The text says “15 feet outside the top of bank whichever is greater” but leaves the comparison unstated. (Section 106-49(b)) |
City-approved retention pond adjacent to wetland that fulfills the section's purpose | 15 feet from wetland edge to top of retention-pond bank. (Section 106-49(b)) |
All other wetlands | 50 feet. (Section 106-49(b)) |
Buffers are shown on the site plan and preserved during development; a city-approved alternative can reduce widths by up to one-third through equivalent-or-greater area redistribution or an approved enhancement plan. (Section 106-49(b)) Prohibited buffer activities generally include structures, roads, utilities, exotics, native-vegetation removal including mowing or trimming, fill, excavation, livestock, storage and harmful chemicals, with the city's health, welfare and safety determination qualifying native-vegetation removal. On ten-acre-or-larger sites under contiguous ownership or unified development control, Section 106-50 requires preservation of at least three percent of the upland area at site-plan submission, with placement maximizing natural-vegetation continuity and the stated contiguous master-plan option. (Section 106-50(b)) The provision specifies one replant per 400 square feet and ground cover on three-foot centers, or a donation equal to three percent of current property-appraiser market value; the historical effective date of that monetary alternative was not established.
Landscape trees, credits and buffers
Applicable Article III planting must be Florida No. 1 or better and at least 70 percent native and drought-tolerant, while its tree clause separately requires at least 70 percent native trees and excludes its specified eucalyptus, Australian pine and punk trees. (Section 106-111(2)) General Article III trees need an average mature crown spread greater than 15 feet and six feet of maintainable clear trunk, with grouped smaller-crown substitutions and the extra-tree crown-spread exception; planting size is two-inch caliper at 12 inches above ground and eight feet tall. Root-damaging species are unacceptable unless the specified containment system is provided: a ten-foot-square, five-foot-deep interior with four-inch concrete and the stated reinforcing mesh or equivalent.
Required tree count | Minimum species count |
|---|---|
1 through 10 | 1. (Section 106-111(2)a) |
11 through 30 | 2. (Section 106-111(2)a) |
More than 30 | 3. (Section 106-111(2)a) |
Landscape location or credit | Tree-related requirement |
|---|---|
Vehicular-use frontage beside public right-of-way | 2.5 canopy trees per 100 lineal feet or fraction, where sufficient planting area supports survival; at least 2.25-inch caliper at planting and mature height at least 15 feet, within the required strip averaging five feet and never less than three feet deep. (Section 106-114(1)) |
Barrier screening a vehicular-use area from abutting property | One tree per 75 lineal feet or fraction, with 25 square feet of planting area and five-foot minimum dimension; Section 106-115(c)'s alley and qualifying existing-barrier exceptions apply. (Section 106-115(b)) |
Interior vehicular-use landscaping | Ten percent of area, with qualifying excess perimeter and same-parcel beautifying landscaping credits. (Section 106-116(a)) |
Rows of at least ten parking spaces | A terminal island at each end, averaging at least five feet wide for the full parking-space length, with a tree or qualifying grouping. (Section 106-116(b)(1)) |
Healthy existing plant material | Landscape standards may be adjusted for credit when the owner demonstrates predevelopment material and the adjustment preserves the article's intent. (Section 106-118) |
Frontage accessways cannot be subtracted when calculating the required tree count. (Section 106-114(3)) Section 106-116(b)(2) governs conditional perimeter relocation of interior landscaping and wheel-stop protection. (Section 106-116(b)(2)) Other planting, maintenance, salt-tolerance, screening and visibility details remain governed by Sections 106-111 through 106-117. (Section 106-111(1); Section 106-112; Section 106-113(a); Section 106-115(a); Section 106-117)
A landscape architect may justify alternatives to the city's recommended species based on wind resistance, canopy and survival, protecting utilities and sidewalks. (Section 106-37)
City recommendation category | Listed trees and palms |
|---|---|
Small | Walter viburnum, wax myrtle, green buttonwood, silver buttonwood, crepe myrtle, hibiscus, oleander, ligustrum, Italian cypress, dahoon holly, dogwood, pindo palm, Jerusalem thorn, bottle brush, sabal palm. (Section 106-37) |
Medium | Chinese fan palm, Cocos plumosa palm, ponytail palm, coconut palm, Drake elm, East Palatka holly, cabbage palm, loblolly bay. (Section 106-37) |
Large | Live oak, red maple, date palm, royal palm. (Section 106-37) |
High wind resistance: dicots | Gumbo limbo, Florida scrub hickory, buttonwood, cocoplum, geiger tree, white stopper, redberry, boxleaf stopper, lignum vitae, dahoon holly, ironwood, crape myrtle, southern magnolia, podocarpus, live oak, sand live oak. (Section 106-37) |
High wind resistance: conifers | Pondcypress, baldcypress. (Section 106-37) |
High wind resistance: palms | Pindo or jelly, areca, Florida silver, bottle, spindle, blue latan, Canary Island date, date, pygmy date, Alexander, cabbage or sabal, key thatch, Florida thatch, Manila. (Section 106-37) |
Medium to medium-high wind resistance: dicots | Pond apple, satinleaf, sea grape, pigeon plum, sweetgum, wild tamarind, sweetbay magnolia, black tupelo, mastic, paradise tree, mahogany. (Section 106-37) |
Medium to medium-high wind resistance: palms | Fishtail, coconut, triangle, royal. (Section 106-37) |
Section 106-112 lists beach vegetation by exposure, not universal planting recommendations. (Section 106-112)
Exposure category | Code-listed vegetation |
|---|---|
No salt-spray protection | Seagrapes, silver buttonwood, Acacia longifolia, gumbo limbo, wild tamarind, tree hibiscus, Jerusalem thorn, palms. (Section 106-112(a)) |
Behind first line, without intervening barrier | Juniper or red cedar, wax myrtle, Japanese black pine, mahogany, black olive. (Section 106-112(b)) |
Significant salt drift, not direct spray | Bottle brush, live oak, rosewood, tree of gold, cherry laurel, schefflera, Norfolk island pine, monkey puzzle, mimosa, annatto, glossy privet, podocarpus, crape myrtle, magnolia. (Section 106-112(c)) |
Some drift, behind beach or barrier | Camphor, citrus fruit trees, cypress, loquat, silk oak (wind-damage susceptibility), golden rain tree, sweet gum (brittle wood), macadamia nut, mango, avocado, pine, African tulip tree. (Section 106-112(d)) |
The separate land-use buffer matrix applies to new construction, changes of use and expansion, with distances measured from the property line and no parking or outdoor storage in the buffer. (Section 106-142(a))
Proposed use | Abutting preservation | Recreation | Single- or two-family | Multifamily | Nonresidential |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Preservation | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet. (Section 106-143) |
Recreation | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet. (Section 106-143) |
Single- or two-family | 5 feet | 5 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet | 0 feet. (Section 106-143) |
Multifamily | 10 feet | 10 feet | 7 feet | 0 feet | 10 feet. (Section 106-143) |
Nonresidential | 15 feet | 15 feet | 15 feet | 10 feet | 0 feet. (Section 106-143) |
Development fees and contractor checks
The tree permit itself has no fee under Section 15-22, including on nonresidential property, but grounds and site-development reviews are separate charges. (Section 15-22; Section 106-91(d)) The grounds-permit provisions use project valuation and require a review fee equal to half the grounds-permit fee when the stated over-$500 valuation and site-plan conditions apply. (Section 15-15(9)) Site-plan fees are additional to other charges and ordinarily due with the initial application or document submission; the historical effective dates of the individual amounts were not established in the reviewed records. (Section 15-21)
Site-development service | Codified amount |
|---|---|
Initial multifamily or commercial review | $1,000. (Section 15-21(1)) |
Initial single-family review | $500. (Section 15-21(2)) |
Subsequent submission | $400. (Section 15-21(3)) |
Site-plan amendment | $400. (Section 15-21(4)) |
Unauthorized plan departure, clearing or other land alteration | $2,400 per violation. (Section 15-21(6)) |
All businesses pruning, treating or removing trees must register with the city, provide liability-insurance proof and pay the $10 registry administration fee in Section 15-16(f); that is not the homeowner's tree-permit fee. (Section 15-16(f)) Street- or park-tree businesses also require the Section 106-36 license and evidence of at least $100,000 bodily-injury or $100,000 property-damage liability coverage, except public-service companies and city employees working in their public-service roles. (Section 106-36) The insurance sentence says “or,” not “and”; ask for city-registration and applicable-license evidence when screening bids.
Appeals and variances
An aggrieved person appealing a building-and-zoning official's Subpart B decision has 30 days after rendition to appeal in writing and file supporting material with the planning and zoning director. (Section 2-150(a)) The board recommends and the city commission decides; Section 2-149 requires 15-day posted notice, while the currently linked administrative-appeal form still says ten days. (Section 2-149; Administrative Appeal Application (PDF)) The appeal stays work and proceedings unless the official certifies imminent peril, subject to the restraining-order route in Section 2-150(c). Variance requests use Section 2-152's hardship criteria and safeguards, while a final special-magistrate order has a separate circuit-court appeal deadline of 30 days after execution. (Section 2-152(a)(1); Section 2-280)
How do you apply for a tree permit?
Section 15-22 sets no fee for the Indian Rocks Beach tree permit and requires a plan showing target-tree locations and species; the city currently links a Tree Permit Application with owner or authorized-applicant information and an attached location sketch. (Section 15-22; Tree Permit Application (PDF)) Send tree-application questions to the Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department at 727-595-2517, with the form's listed email [email protected] and address 1507 Bay Palm Boulevard, Indian Rocks Beach, FL 33785. (Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department)
Confirm jurisdiction and scope. Use the Pinellas County address lookup and identify removal, pruning, clearing, development or wetland work.
Complete the city form. Include property address, parcel ID, lot dimensions, owner and authorized-applicant information, removal reason, tree count and types, and signatures. (Tree Permit Application (PDF))
Attach the sketch and applicable development plans. Identify tree locations and species; a sketch does not replace required professional plans. (Section 15-22; Tree Permit Application (PDF); Section 106-59; Section 106-91(c))
Submit as directed. The permit page directs applicants to email the application and drawings to [email protected]; confirm project-specific additions. (City permit information)
Obtain the applicable decision before activity. Retain the permit and its conditions or establish the applicable exemption route, because the city form says deviations from permit conditions render the permit invalid. (Section 106-55; Tree Permit Application (PDF))
Complete replacement and verification. The form includes city verification of remaining and planted trees, and development compliance can affect occupancy, permits and inspections. (Tree Permit Application (PDF); Section 106-47)
The no-fee tree rule traces to Ordinance 2003-16 in the code history; its historical effective date was not established in the city materials reviewed on October 2, 2026. (Section 15-22) No new tree-permit charge was found on the current application, permit pages or reviewed 2026 commission materials; unlocated resolutions remain possible.
Where do city guidance and the code differ?
The current tree form still cites county Chapter 166, Article II, while current county Section 166-81(c) sends tree removal to Chapter 58, Article XIX. (Tree Permit Application (PDF); Pinellas County Code, Chapter 166) The form's replacement verification refers to six-foot, 1.5-inch-caliper trees and qualifying undersize retained trees, but Article III can require larger landscape material for vehicular-use projects. (Section 106-111(2)a; Section 106-114(1)) The administrative-appeal form's ten-day notice statement also differs from the code's 15-day requirement. (Administrative Appeal Application (PDF); Section 2-149)
A form does not amend the ordinance; ask the department to reconcile discrepancies rather than choosing the less restrictive wording.
Is the property inside Indian Rocks Beach?
The Pinellas County address lookup identifies whether a full address is in a municipality or unincorporated county territory. The county's tree-application page directs residents outside its listed unincorporated, Belleair Bluffs and Belleair Shore service jurisdictions to their cities. (Pinellas County tree and habitat application instructions) Related reading, not Indian Rocks Beach authority: our unincorporated Pinellas County guide, Largo guide and Seminole guide.
What about right-of-way trees and utility work?
Section 106-53 requires a city permit before removing trees from a public right-of-way, while county-maintained rights-of-way also have their own county authorization requirement. (Section 106-53; Pinellas County Code, Chapter 58, Article XIX) The city may care for and remove public trees under Section 106-41, and private adjacent owners' planting must comply with Article II. (Section 106-41) Right-of-way encroachments have a separate use-permit requirement, with the single-driveway exception stated in Section 54-34; maintenance responsibility does not itself authorize removal. (Section 54-34; Section 54-32(1))
Utilities must request greenery removal in their permit process, support permanent removal with the necessity findings, and provide an acceptable restoration plan for temporary removal. (Section 54-153(a)) For trimming to avoid cable contact, Section 54-153(d) requires at least 48 hours' notice, limits work to clear cable passage without damaging major structural branches or natural growth, and assigns resulting damage responsibility to the utility. Planting design, placement and utility conflicts are also addressed in Sections 106-37 through 106-40, rather than by a homeowner's assumption that a curbside tree is private. (Section 106-37; Section 106-38; Section 106-39(a); Section 106-40)
What does the Indian Rocks Beach code not say?
A search of the complete city code found no reference to Florida Statute 163.045; the state-law analysis in this guide comes from the statute itself, not a city-code paraphrase. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances) The city code also supplied no adopted named historic-tree or specimen-tree designation in the reviewed text; its definitions and permit clauses should not be mistaken for a designation register.
Records searched but not located
October 2, 2026 searches of the current tree form, permit/department pages, meeting archive and city records located neither a city-specific Section 163.045 notice nor a named historic/specimen designation register. Historical effective dates remain unestablished for the tree-permit, registry, civil-valuation, administrative-penalty and site-plan amounts.
Sources and scope
City-code provenance: codified through Ordinance No. 2026-03, enacted June 9, 2026; read October 2, 2026. (Indian Rocks Beach Code of Ordinances)
Where does this leave your tree or project?
A tree may be a candidate for removal or pruning, but the Planning, Zoning and Permitting Department decides the city application and the appropriate authority must resolve the property-specific requirements. Ken's Tree Service has worked since 1996 from Tarpon Springs, across approximately 20 miles covering north Pinellas County, west Pasco County and the northwest corner of Hillsborough County.
This Indian Rocks Beach guide is a regional reference, not an offer to perform work or provide an assessment in Indian Rocks Beach. For projects within our service area, our number is 727-934-5804; for questions about the code explained here, start a conversation with our website agent, the chat on this page.