Do You Need a Permit to Remove a Tree in Largo, Florida?
Published September 28, 2026. Last reviewed September 28, 2026. Next review due March 28, 2027. By Forest, Property Intelligence Specialist, Ken's Tree Service.
A Largo mailing address does not settle whether a property is inside the City of Largo, and that question comes before whether the city or Pinellas County sets the tree rules. Inside the city, a tree removal permit is required to remove or alter a protected tree on any site: a tree four inches caliper or greater, or a palm of any species with four and one-half feet or more of clear trunk. Dead, diseased, invasive and structure-contact trees still need the permit but pay no fee and owe no replacement. The rule has exemptions and a state-law route for single-family homes, set out below. This guide reads Largo's codified text for homeowners, property managers, contractors and developers.
Key facts, verified September 28, 2026
The law: City of Largo Comprehensive Development Code (CDC) Section 10.7.2, read with the rest of Chapter 10, the Chapter 20 definitions and the Code of Ordinances. Codified through CDC Ordinance No. 2026-07, adopted May 19, 2026, and Code of Ordinances Ordinance No. 2025-07, adopted June 2, 2026 (both Supp. No. 18).
Address first: a Largo mailing address is not proof the property is in the city. Use Pinellas County's Address Lookup Tool.
Protected: trees four inches caliper or greater, and palms of any species with four and one-half feet or more of clear trunk, with the exemptions below.
Government fees: $20.00 per permit per property plus $25.00 per caliper inch removed, with waivers below, tripled if work starts before the permit.
Replacement: Table 10-8 ratios on site, with a Tree Fund payment only for inches the site has no room for, subject to the waivers below and the house-lot rule.
State law: Florida Statute 163.045 can displace the permit on a qualifying single-family lot, where signed onsite documentation shows the tree poses an unacceptable risk (conditions below).
Mangroves: removal is barred by the city's code. Trimming needs a Pinellas County permit under the city's code; a state exemption for some owner trimming may also bear on it (see Mangroves).
City or county: Largo's code exempts the city from a county ordinance; the 2026 county article says it applies inside cities. Neither code says how the two fit.
Permit office: Community Development Department, Planning Division, Planner on Call 727-587-6749 Ext. 7301, [email protected].
Is a Largo address inside the City of Largo?
Not necessarily. The City of Largo's annexation FAQ says properties can be in unincorporated Pinellas County regardless of their mailing address, and that properties with a Clearwater mailing address can be inside Largo's Planning Service Boundary. Pinellas County's Address Lookup Tool tells you whether an address is in unincorporated Pinellas County or one of the municipalities.
The city's annexation FAQ puts it this way: "Throughout Pinellas County there are properties that are in unincorporated Pinellas County meaning they are not incorporated into any municipality, regardless of their mailing address, therefore their form of local government is Pinellas County itself." It also says which code governs: "Unincorporated property owners follow Pinellas County's Code of Ordinances and Comprehensive Development Code." A recorded annexation agreement (AA) does not change that. The city's Annexation Process page says: "Although the executed AA has been recorded and are receiving certain municipal services, your property is still in unincorporated Pinellas County."
Check the address with the county's Address Lookup Tool. This guide does not determine any address. If the result is unincorporated Pinellas County, our Pinellas County tree removal permit guide covers the county rules. If it is the City of Largo, read on.
Inside the city: whose tree rules apply, Largo's or Pinellas County's?
Largo's Sec. 19-25, from Ord. No. 83-17 of April 19, 1983, exempts the city from the county Tree Removal Regulating Ordinance No. 76-16. The current county tree article, Sec. 58-809, enacted by Ord. No. 26-3 in January 2026, says it applies within incorporated and unincorporated areas and that a conflicting municipal ordinance prevails. Neither code says whether the 1983 exemption reaches the 2026 article, so ask both the City of Largo and Pinellas County.
The two enacted texts, in full:
City of Largo, Sec. 19-25: "The incorporated area of the county within the boundaries of the city is hereby exempted from the provisions of the county Tree Removal Regulating Ordinance No. 76-16."
Pinellas County, Sec. 58-809 (Ord. No. 26-3, January 20, 2026): "This article shall apply to property, excluding county-maintained right-of-way, within the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county. Where these provisions conflict with a municipal ordinance, the municipal ordinance shall prevail. No trees shall be removed from county-maintained right-of-way without an approved permit."
The gap: Sec. 19-25 names Ordinance No. 76-16, and none of the eight sections of the current county article (58-807 through 58-814, each carrying Ord. No. 26-3) contains that number. The rest of the county code was not searched for it. Dunedin carries the same kind of exemption in its Sec. 105-35.3. No written answer from either government was found, and this guide does not resolve the question. By Sec. 58-809's own words, where the county article conflicts with Largo's ordinance, Largo's prevails. The county's right-of-way sentence is covered under public property below. The rest of this guide sets out Largo's own rule.
How a permit is decided
The City Arborist field checks each application, and the removal is documented on the City Inspection form. Section 10.7.2(B)(5) lists two approval standards: "(i) If the tree is a threat to public safety, and/or health through danger of falling or interference with utility services; (ii) If there is a likelihood of property damage the property owner must provide the appropriate documentation to demonstrate the damage to the property." The section does not say whether these are the only grounds for approval. Approval normally carries a replacement condition (below).
Under Section 10.7.2(B)(1), a permit can issue simultaneously with a Development Order (DO) as part of site plan review, before a site clearing or grubbing permit, or for an individual tree at any point during or after development, on any site. The Development Controls Officer (DCO) is the Director of the Largo Community Development Department or his/her designee.
Which trees and palms are protected in Largo?
Do only sabal palms need a permit? No. Largo's code protects palms without naming a species, so every palm species with four and one-half feet or more of clear trunk, measured from the lowest green frond to ground level, is a protected tree, subject to the same exemptions as any protected tree. The city's Ask a Planner page describes the test as palms over 4.5 feet tall, which is a height test; the code's clear-trunk test is the law.
The rule, Section 10.7.2(B)(2), from its first word: "(2) Applicability - A tree removal permit shall be required for the removal or alteration of the following protected trees and groupings of native vegetation on any site in the City, including the public right-of-way and public properties, regardless of use or land use designation: a. Protected trees - Trees protected under this Section are: (i) Trees measuring four (4) inches caliper or greater; or (ii) Palms with a four and one-half [...] feet or more of clear trunk, as measured from the lowest green frond to ground level." The omission is only the figure, printed as the numeral 4 with a one-half fraction in parentheses. The exemptions are set out in one place below, and mangroves have their own clause.
Clear trunk, not height. The city's Ask a Planner page says "palm trees over 4.5 feet tall". Overall height and clear trunk are different measurements, and the code is the law.
Ten feet is a planting size. Table 10-7 and the approved species key set a 10 feet clear trunk minimum for palms being planted to meet a requirement. It does not change the protection test.
No palm definition. A whole-code search found no Chapter 20 definition of Palm or Clear Trunk, and the Chapter 20 Protected Tree definition does not mention palms.
Caliper or DBH: the code does not reconcile them. The rule protects trees four inches caliper or greater, and the code defines it: "(1) Caliper: The standard nursery measurement for diameter in inches of a single-stemmed tree trunk measured twelve (12) inches above grade for trees four (4) inches diameter at breast height (DBH) or greater and six (6) inches above grade for trees less than four (4) inches in DBH." The Chapter 20 definition reads: "(17) Protected Tree: Any tree species that is four (4) inches or greater in trunk diameter measured at four and one-half (4.5) feet above grade." That is the DBH point, which the code defines at four and one-half feet above original grade, with the stems of a multi-stemmed understory tree added together. Both are enacted text, and this guide does not convert one into the other. The city's form asks for trunk diameter at 4.5 feet, for non-residential properties only. Ask the Planning Division which point it applies to a tree near four inches.
A tree, for the code, is "An erect standing woody plant, together with its trunk, crown, and root system, of a species that normally attains a minimum overall height at maturity of at least fifteen (15) feet."
Native vegetation. Section 10.7.2(B)(2)(c) also requires the permit "to alter stands of native vegetation serving as existing or potential buffers along watercourses, along freshwater and saltwater wetland edges, along marine shorelines, around the periphery of a site, and separating potentially incompatible land uses." Native means flora indigenous to Central Florida as it existed before the first European visitation.
How to measure your own tree
Caliper: 12 inches above grade, or 6 inches above grade for a tree under 4 inches DBH.
DBH: four and one-half feet (54 inches) above grade. For a multi-stemmed understory tree, add the diameters of all stems.
Palms: clear trunk from ground level to the lowest green frond, against four and one-half feet.
For each measurement, wrap a tape around the trunk, read the circumference and divide by 3.14. Circumferences for the diameters in Largo's code, for a single round trunk:
Diameter | Where it appears | Circumference |
|---|---|---|
4 inches | protection threshold (caliper) and Protected Tree definition (at 4.5 feet) | about 12.56 inches |
10 inches | existing house lot replacement line, Section 10.7.2(B)(3)(b) | about 31.4 inches |
15 inches | top of the first replacement band, Table 10-8 | about 47.1 inches |
16 inches | start of the second band, Table 10-8 | about 50.24 inches |
30 inches | top of the second band, Table 10-8 | about 94.2 inches |
If a tree falls on different sides of a line at the two heights, take it to the Planning Division before anything is cut.
What counts as removal, and is pruning regulated?
The permit covers "removal or alteration". The code defines removal broadly: "(8) Remove or Removal (of Tree): The actual removal, transplanting or causing the effective removal through damaging, poisoning, excessive pruning, topping, or other direct or indirect actions resulting in the death or severe decline of a tree." Effective removal includes "flush cuts, mechanical damage to the trunk, damage to the roots by machinery, chemicals or excessive back fill (over three inches), over lifting, over thinning, lions tailing, topping, and the removal of a branch greater than twenty-five (25) percent of the trunk size at DBH." Prohibited pruning is pruning "that does not conform with the ANSI A300 pruning standards, and is excessive (removal of more than twenty-five (25) percent of a tree's crown), or characterized by topping, lion-tailing, and flush and stub cuts." These definitions are not limited by property type.
Detailed pruning rules apply on sites subject to a DO, excluding low density residential, multi-family and mobile home sites (Section 10.7.1(D)). On those sites, pruning follows the ANSI A300 standards and is performed by or under the direct supervision of a licensed arborist. It may remove no more than 25 percent of the crown at one time, and may leave no more than 33 percent bare trunk on an immature tree. It may not remove an immature tree's top branch or leader, and may not use climbing hooks unless the tree is coming down. Hat racking and pollarding are prohibited. Trees pruned by utility providers within utility easements are outside that provision.
Every owner must prune trees from their property that project over the public right-of-way: "All vegetation shall be maintained at a height of no less than eight (8) feet over sidewalks and sixteen (16) feet over roadways." (Section 10.7.1(E))
Which removals are exempt, and which pay no fee?
This is the one place the exemptions are set out in full. Most waive the fee and the replacement, not the permit.
Situation | Permit | Permit fee | Replacement | Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Target invasive species | Required | None | None | 10.7.2(B)(3)(a) |
Dead, dying or diseased tree | Required | None | None | 10.7.2(B)(3)(d) |
Main stem or major branch contacting a permanent living structure | Required | None | None | 10.7.2(B)(2)(d) |
Tree endangering public health or safety | The DCO may authorize immediate removal before an application is filed | Not stated | Not stated | 10.7.2(B)(2)(d) |
Repair cost exceeds the tree's value, by written DCO determination | Required | May be waived | May be waived, with the fee in lieu | 10.7.2(B)(3)(e) |
Existing single family, duplex, triplex or mobile home lot | Required | Due | None for trees 10 inches or less; above that, none where Table 10-6 is met | 10.7.2(B)(3)(b) |
Bona fide agricultural use, or nursery growing for sale | The section does not apply | 10.7.2(B)(3)(c) | ||
Qualifying single-family lot with documentation of unacceptable risk under Florida Statute 163.045 (next section) | Not required | None | None | FS 163.045 |
The clauses, from their first words:
Invasives: "(3) Exemptions - a. Target invasive exotic plant species shall be those species listed on the current Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council exotic and invasive species list and shall be exempt from permit fees and replacement." The council now operates as the Florida Invasive Species Council, which says it "was founded in 1984 as the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (FLEPPC)", and publishes its current plant list. The address printed in the code no longer resolves. The city's Ask a Planner page gives its own examples, which are not the code's: Brazilian pepper, Australian pine, camphor, carrotwood, punk tree and mimosa.
Dead, dying or diseased: "d. Removal of dead, dying or diseased trees shall not require a permit fee or replacement, but shall require a permit."
Public safety and structure contact: "d. Public safety - The DCO may authorize the immediate removal of any tree endangering the public health or safety prior to filing an application for a tree removal permit. In addition, trees with a main stem or major branch contacting a permanent living structure shall require a permit but shall not require a permit fee or replacement." The emergency route is the DCO's authorization, not a self-declared exemption. After a storm, it is the route a property manager or owner needs on any site.
Repair cost: the DCO may exempt a tree from the permit fee, replacement or the fee in lieu. The DCO must first determine that the documented or predicted cost of repairing damage created by the tree exceeds the tree's value as set by the fee in lieu of replacement and the fee schedule. That determination is issued in writing after consultation with a City representative and the applicant.
Existing house lots: "b. Existing single family, duplex, triplex and mobile home lots shall not be required to provide tree replacement for the removal of trees ten (10) inches in diameter or less. Replacement will be required for trees greater than ten (10) inches in diameter. However, providing that the minimum planting requirement in Table 10-6 is met, replacements shall not be required for the removal of trees greater than ten (10) inches in diameter."
Agriculture and nurseries: "c. Bona fide agricultural uses existing at the time of adoption of this CDC and those portions of state-approved or governmental nursery operations growing plants, trees, and produce for resale, or for sale to the general public in the normal course of business, are also exempt from the provisions of this Section." This is the only exemption from the section itself.
The code defines a hazardous tree as one that, "in the opinion of the City", is a hazard, including dead, declining, diseased, broken, split, cracked, leaning and uprooted trees. The definition creates no exemption of its own. The waivers and the DCO route above are what apply.
Does Florida Statute 163.045 let me remove a tree without a permit?
Only when every condition is met. The property must be a single-family, detached building on a lot actively used for single-family residential purposes, as a conforming or legally recognized nonconforming use. The owner must possess documentation: an onsite assessment performed under Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017) by an ISA certified arborist or a Florida licensed landscape architect, and signed by that person, showing the tree poses an unacceptable risk to persons or property, which means removal is the only means of practically mitigating its risk below moderate. The statute does not apply to delegated mangrove authority, and by its definition of residential property it does not describe commercial or multifamily property or HOA common areas.
Florida Statute 163.045 stops a local government from requiring a permit, fee or mitigation where every condition below is met. A whole-code search found no reference to it in either Largo code. The conditions, in the statute's words:
Residential property. Subsection (1)(b):
(b) "Residential property" means a single-family, detached building located on a lot that is actively used for single-family residential purposes and that is either a conforming use or a legally recognized nonconforming use in accordance with the local jurisdiction's applicable land development regulations.
Documentation, from an onsite assessment to a named standard, signed. Subsection (1)(a), from the start of subsection (1):
(1) For purposes of this section, the term: (a) "Documentation" means an onsite assessment performed in accordance with the tree risk assessment procedures outlined in Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017) by an arborist certified by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) or a Florida licensed landscape architect and signed by the certified arborist or licensed landscape architect.
Unacceptable risk, in the statute's sense. Subsection (2): "(2) A local government may not require a notice, application, approval, permit, fee, or mitigation for the pruning, trimming, or removal of a tree on a residential property if the property owner possesses documentation from an arborist certified by the ISA or a Florida licensed landscape architect that the tree poses an unacceptable risk to persons or property. A tree poses an unacceptable risk if removal is the only means of practically mitigating its risk below moderate, as determined by the tree risk assessment procedures outlined in Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017)."
The assessment decides the third condition. This guide makes no prediction about what any assessment will find. Subsection (3) bars a replanting requirement: "(3) A local government may not require a property owner to replant a tree that was pruned, trimmed, or removed in accordance with this section." Subsection (4) excludes "the exercise of specifically delegated authority for mangrove protection" (see Mangroves). The statute's history is s. 1, ch. 2019-155 and s. 1, ch. 2022-121.
By its definition, the statute does not describe a duplex, triplex, townhome, condominium, apartment building, mobile home park common area, HOA common area or commercial site. Ken's Tree Service does not sign this documentation itself. Where a homeowner wants it, the signed report is something we arrange as part of the job.
Mangroves
Section 10.7.2(B)(2)(b): "b. Mangroves - No mangrove plant or tree shall be removed. No trimming of mangroves shall take place without a permit issued by Pinellas County Environmental Management. All trimming and maintenance of mangroves is subject to the requirements of F.S. 403.9321" through 403.9333 (the code joins the numbers with a dash). The Ask a Planner page softens "shall" to "should". The code is the law.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection's list of delegated local governments names Pinellas County (727-453-3385) and not the City of Largo. That the county's permit applies inside Largo comes from Largo's own code.
The state's homeowner trimming exemption, Florida Statute 403.9326, from the start of subsection (1): "(1) The following activities are exempt from the permitting requirements of ss. 403.9321 - 403.9333 and any other provision of law if no herbicide or other chemical is used to remove mangrove foliage: (a) Mangrove trimming in riparian mangrove fringe areas that meet the following criteria: 1. The riparian mangrove fringe must be located on lands owned or controlled by the person who will supervise or conduct the trimming activities or on sovereign submerged lands immediately waterward and perpendicular to the lands. 2. The mangroves that are the subject of the trimming activity may not exceed 10 feet in pretrimmed height as measured from the substrate and may not be trimmed so that the overall height of any mangrove is reduced to less than 6 feet as measured from the substrate. This exemption applies to property with a shoreline of 150 feet or less. Owners of property with a shoreline of more than 150 feet may not trim, under an exemption, more than 65 percent of the mangroves along the shoreline."
Several questions stay open. Neither Largo's clause nor the state exemption says how the other applies. On development sites, Section 11.16.6 permits alteration of mangrove stands in coastal high hazard areas only with Florida Department of Environmental Protection approval. Section 11.9.1 requires flood hazard site plans to show any such alteration. The code does not say how these fit with the removal bar. Neither the statute nor the code says whether Florida Statute 163.045 reaches the city's removal bar. Ask the City of Largo Planning Division and Pinellas County before any mangrove work.
What replacement is owed?
Unless the section provides otherwise (see the exemptions above), approval of a removal requires the applicant to relocate or replace the tree (Section 10.7.2(B)(6)(a)). The replacement must be commensurate in size and species, shade tree for shade tree, drawing on the Approved Species List, Table 10-9, at the ratios in Table 10-8:
Existing tree | Replacement ratio | Preservation ratio |
|---|---|---|
4 to 15 inch caliper | 1 inch replaced per each inch | 1 required canopy tree |
16 to 30 inch caliper (Laurel Oaks excepted) | 2 inches replaced per each inch | 2 required canopy trees |
Over 30 inch caliper (Laurel Oaks excepted) | 3 inches replaced per each inch | 3 required canopy trees |
Laurel Oaks are replaced at 1 inch to 1 inch. Replacement trees must be at least eight feet tall and two inches in trunk caliper, Florida Grade #1 or better nursery stock, and the applicant answers for their healthy growing condition for one year after installation (10.7.2(B)(6)(b)).
Replacement is meant to be on the site, but "If a property has insufficient space for the required replacement trees, any remaining deficit in inches to be replaced from Table 10-8 shall be mitigated by payment of a fee in lieu of replacement to the City of Largo Tree Fund." (10.7.2(B)(6)(c)) The rate per inch is left to the City's fee ordinance (10.7.2(B)(7)). The Tree Fund pays for trees on public property within city limits. Trees planted to meet buffer requirements do not count toward replacement. The Building Division must be notified at least forty-eight hours before trees are transplanted on site.
Existing house lots. Above ten inches, the operative test is Table 10-6. Section 10.7.2(B)(3)(b), quoted above, requires replacement above ten inches and then removes it where Table 10-6 is met. Section 10.5.3(C)(5) says any removal of trees greater than ten inches DBH "will require that the minimum planting requirement, shown on Table 10-6, is maintained." Table 10-6 sets the minimum canopy trees for single family, duplex and triplex lots:
Lot size (sq. ft.) | Minimum canopy trees |
|---|---|
0 to 5,000 | 2 |
5,001 to 7,500 | 3 |
7,501 to 10,000 | 4 |
10,001 to 12,500 | 5 |
12,501 to 15,000 | 6 |
Above 15,000 square feet, one canopy or understory tree is required for each additional 2,500 square feet or portion of that. A canopy tree is a self-supporting, protected woody plant that normally grows to a minimum height of thirty-five feet and has a trunk that can be maintained with over eight feet of clear wood. An understory tree normally reaches at least fifteen but not more than thirty-five feet at maturity.
What does the permit cost?
The City of Largo government fees in Code of Ordinances Appendix B Sec. 4 are a Tree Removal Permit of $20.00 per permit per property and a Tree Removal Fee of $25.00 per caliper inch of tree to be removed. Fees are tripled where work starts before the permit. Invasive, dead, dying or diseased and structure-contact trees pay no permit fee, and the other waivers and exemptions are set out in the exemptions section of this guide.
The schedule is in Appendix B, Sec. 4, under "B. Permitting Phase:". The fee's unit is the caliper inch of tree to be removed. The same schedule lists a $20.00 Planning Permit Review Fee, and does not say whether it applies to a tree permit. Appendix B Sec. 4(C)(5): "(5) Where work for which a permit is required by this Code is started prior to obtaining said permit, the fees herein shall be tripled, but the payment of such triple fee shall not relieve any persons from fully complying with the requirements of this Code in the execution of the work nor from any other penalties prescribed." There is no residential or commercial distinction in the tree fee lines.
Two unit questions stay open:
Which diameter is billed. The fee is per caliper inch. The Table 10-2 worksheet is headed "(a) DBH of Existing Trees", and the form asks for diameter at 4.5 feet. The code never converts caliper to DBH.
Which fee is the fee in lieu. The code does not say whether the $25.00 per caliper inch Tree Removal Fee is the fee in lieu of replacement, or a separate charge.
Ask the Planning Division how it computes both before relying on any total.
How to apply
Confirm the property is inside the city with the Address Lookup Tool.
Measure each tree at both heights, and each palm's clear trunk, as above.
Get the form. The city's Applications and Forms page lists one Tree Removal Application. It prints no revision date.
Complete it. Under Section 10.7.2(B)(4), the form is "filled out completely and accurately by the legal property owner or representative of the property owner, which may include a tree service hired by the property owner and with a current BTR on file with the City of Largo." A BTR is a business tax receipt. A sketch showing the trees to be removed goes with it. The owner is liable for any replacement or fee in lieu, and the form accepts a Letter of Authorization from the owner in place of the owner's signature.
Submit it. The city's Permit Types page says "A tree permit requires an online tree removal application", through the Largo Civic Access Portal (LCAP). It also asks that the inspector have access to the entire property with gates left open. The Ask a Planner page still says to submit at Largo City Hall, 201 Highland Ave. Ask the Planner on Call which route the city accepts.
Expect a field check by the City Arborist.
A whole-code search found no codified deadline for the city to act on an application.
What happens if a tree is removed without a permit?
The remedies stack, and they reach the owner, the violator and the property.
Triple fees, which do not relieve compliance or any other penalty (above).
Replacement. Trees illegally destroyed or majorly damaged by illegal activity are replaced under the replacement standards (Section 10.6.3(E)(2)).
Fines. Under Sec. 9-72, the code enforcement board may fine up to $250.00 per day for a first violation and $5,000.00 per day for a repeat violation, plus repair costs. The higher limit, up to $15,000.00 per violation, applies only "if the code enforcement board finds the violation to be irreparable or irreversible in nature".
A lien. A recorded fine order becomes a lien on the land and on any other real or personal property of the violator. After three months unpaid, the board or special magistrate may authorize the city attorney to foreclose or sue for a money judgment.
Orders. The board may issue orders with the force of law to bring a violation into compliance (Sec. 9-46).
Citations. A violation is a civil infraction with a maximum civil penalty of $500.00 (Sec. 9-102). Citations and notices to appear follow the schedule set by the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court Administrative Order No. 2018-068 PI-CTY (Sec. 9-106, Sec. 9-137). A violation is class V unless otherwise indicated, and where the county court's uniform schedule provides a greater penalty, the greater penalty is imposed (Sec. 9-138).
Stop work orders. "B. City arborist - The City's arborist, or designee, may issue stop work orders for noncompliance with the standards of this CDC relating to enforcement of landscaping and irrigation standards of an approved DO, tree removal permit, or site clearing and demolition permit." (Section 3.8.3(B)) The Community Standards Division issues notices of violation. It can refer uncorrected matters to the Code Enforcement Board or Special Magistrate (Section 2.1.7) or to county court.
Can a tree decision be appealed?
DCO decisions go to the Planning Board (Section 4.4.1). The original applicant files a written request "within thirty (30) days after the date of the decision" with the fee (Section 4.4.4). The request carries a notarized signature, plus the owner's letter of authorization if an agent files it. The Planning Board may reverse, alter or modify a decision only on finding that all of the criteria in Section 4.4.3 are met.
Modification of standards. One listed ground is to "Lessen tree removal and replacement requirements" (Section 3.5.9). The DCO's decision, or any condition on it, can be appealed to the Planning Board (Section 3.5.6).
Hardship relief is for strict application of CDC requirements that "would render a parcel incapable of reasonable economic use" (Section 4.3.1). It is decided at a Planning Board public hearing (Section 4.3.4), and a modification request does not close that route (Section 3.5.5).
Building Official rulings go to the Pinellas County Construction License Board of Appeals, as provided in Laws of Florida Chapter 75-489 (Section 4.4.5).
Code enforcement board orders go to circuit court within 30 days, on the record rather than de novo (Sec. 9-74).
Government fees for hardship relief and appeals: $500.00 Commercial/Multi-Family, $300.00 Residential, $50.00 for each additional separate variation.
Trees in the right-of-way, parks and public property
Largo's permit rule reaches the public right-of-way and public properties (Section 10.7.2(B)(2)). Sec. 21-23, in full: "No trees shall be removed from the public right-of-way except under the direction of the city manager or his/her designee." In parks, no person may transplant or remove any tree or plant without special permission, which the code provides only for scientists or students of botany collecting specimens (Sec. 17-7(d)).
The county's Sec. 58-809 says "No trees shall be removed from county-maintained right-of-way without an approved permit." Whether that applies inside Largo is part of the city-or-county question above. Ask Pinellas County about any tree in a county-maintained right-of-way inside the city.
Contractors and utilities. Right-of-way work not tied to a Small Scale Approval or DO is filed with the Engineering Department (Section 3.8.1). Appendix B sets right-of-way permit fees for commercial customers: "(c) Landscaping: $100.00. (d) Fee for failing to obtain a permit: Triple." Utility pruning in utility easements is outside the DO-site pruning rule. In the Clearwater-Largo Road Community Redevelopment District, street trees must be approved canopy trees (Section 7.2.3). For the rules across the city line, see our Clearwater tree removal permit guide.
If you own or manage commercial, multifamily, mobile home or HOA property
The permit requirement and thresholds are the same on every site, "regardless of use or land use designation", and so are the government fees. The exemptions apply the same way, with one difference: the house-lot replacement rule covers only existing single family, duplex, triplex and mobile home lots. On any other site, an approved removal carries the Table 10-8 replacement unless another exemption applies. Only the appeal fee differs by property type. Florida Statute 163.045 does not reach these properties.
Development Order sites. Landscaping required by a DO "must be maintained in accordance with the approved landscaping plan for the life of the project" (Section 10.7.1(B)). A preserved tree that dies before the certificate of occupancy (CO) is replaced under Table 10-8, and after the CO in line with the credit awarded under the DO. After notice of a failure to maintain, the owner has thirty days to remedy it before code enforcement. The Permit Types page adds that commercial replacement "must comply with the approved landscaping plan." The code does not say whether removing a tree shown on an approved plan needs a DO amendment. Ask the Planning Division before a plan tree comes out.
Pruning on DO sites follows the rules under pruning above.
Mobile home parks. Individual lots are exempt from minimum tree counts. Replacement for trees removed from a lot goes into areas maintained by the park as a whole, "such as common areas, buffer yards, and areas around retention ponds." (Section 10.5.3(D))
Who applies. The owner or the owner's representative applies, including a tree service with a current BTR, and the form accepts the owner's Letter of Authorization. The code does not separately name property managers or associations, so confirm with the Planning Division what authorization it accepts. The owner stays liable for replacement and fees in lieu.
Form footnotes for non-residential property: diameter at 4.5 feet, and a signed Certified Arborist letter to waive fees and replacement for a diseased or dying tree (see where guidance and code differ).
If you are building, adding on, installing a pool or clearing
Does the project need a Development Order?
Projects subject to a Development Order need an approved master landscape plan and approved tree protection measures before the DO, a tree inventory signed by a registered Landscape Architect, licensed Arborist, or similarly credentialed professional, barricades at least 1 foot beyond the drip line and at least 3 feet high inspected before clearing or demolition, root pruning by a licensed arborist, a monthly status report and a bi-weekly Certified Arborist inspection until the certificate of occupancy. Replacement follows Table 10-8, with a fee in lieu paid to the City of Largo Tree Fund for any deficit. Single-family, duplex, triplex and mobile home lots on platted lots do not require a DO but still need the tree removal permit, subject to the exemptions and the Florida Statute 163.045 route.
House lots. The CDC's Sections 10.4 and 10.5 "do not apply to the development of individual single family, duplex, triplex, as well as mobile homes on already platted lots, since they do not require a DO" (Section 10.3). Their landscape standards are in Section 10.5.3. The code does not address pools or additions by name, so confirm a project with the Planning Division. The tree removal permit still applies to any protected tree, with the exemptions and the state-law route above.
Level I, small scale review covers non-residential, small-type housing and multi-family projects. Tree removal is one of the impacts reviewed administratively, and a small scale approval memo must issue before the project begins (Section 3.2.1). It does not apply to detached single-family property, accessory dwelling units or small townhome developments (Section 3.3.1).
Level II, full scale review "applies to all new structures that exceed Level I requirements, townhome (small) developments, and developments of five (5) or more total dwelling units" (Section 3.4.1). Chapter 10 compliance is a statutory precondition for the DO.
Sequencing
Master landscape plan approved before the DO, with the final landscape site plan signed and sealed by a registered landscape architect (Section 10.4.2(A)).
A site clearing, grading and grubbing plan with a tree survey, submitted with the final site plan. Tree protection measures are approved before the DO. "On parcels undergoing site plan review, no land clearing or grading may occur until after the DO is issued." (Section 10.4.2(C))
The tree removal permit, with the DO or before the clearing or grubbing permit (Section 10.7.2(B)(1)).
Clearing between the DO and the Development Permit only at the DCO's case-by-case discretion, and only where construction will take place (Section 10.6.4).
Other permits go to the Building Division with a certified copy of the Small Scale Approval or DO, unless exempted (Section 3.8.1).
A DO is effective for twelve months. Failing to honor it lets the City issue a stop work order or refuse further permits or the CO (Section 3.8.2).
With no existing trees, or none to be removed, the site plan cover sheet carries a note saying so. The tree preservation plan must also cover trees on adjacent properties within twenty-five feet of a property line (Section 10.4.2(D)(3)).
What the submittals must show, and who signs them
Tree inventory, "completed and signed by a registered Landscape Architect, licensed Arborist, or similarly credentialed professional" (Section 10.4.1(C)). It shows every tree four inches caliper or greater, every preserved tree, and trees on adjacent properties within twenty-five feet. A data table like Table 10-2 totals the caliper inches removed and replaced.
Grading plan showing existing and proposed grades within fifty feet of any protected tree.
Final site plan with a site clearing and tree protection plan, and a landscaping plan showing every existing tree and native stand and whether it is removed, relocated or kept (Section 3.7.7).
Root pruning report, "prepared by a certified arborist prior to issuance of any clearing and grubbing or demolition permit, when applicable."
The code's credential words vary: "licensed arborist" for root pruning and DO-site pruning, "certified arborist" for the root pruning report, alternative protection methods and the bi-weekly inspection. A whole-code search found no definition of licensed arborist. Chapter 20 defines an Approved Arborist as an ISA Certified Arborist or an ASCA Registered Consulting Arborist. Ask the Planning Division which credential it accepts for each submittal.
Preservation standards
On sites other than single-family, duplex, triplex, mobile homes and Special Area Plans, the code requires preserving existing native plantings that fulfill its intent (Section 10.5.2). Natural vegetation is retained where no construction will occur, and no ropes or ribbons may be attached to a protected tree (Section 10.6.4). Protected trees saved on the preservation plan may be credited against new tree requirements at the Table 10-8 preservation ratios, if they meet Section 10.7.2 and figure 10-20 (Section 10.4.2(D)(5)). There is no specimen or heritage tree category and no retention or canopy percentage. Relief runs through the modification and hardship routes under appeals above.
Protecting trees during construction
Barricades around all trees and native vegetation to remain (Section 10.6.3):
Build: 2 by 4 posts at least 4 feet long, 1 foot in the ground and 3 feet above it, no more than 6 feet apart; a 2 by 4 top rail; PVC-type safety fence fastened at no more than 8 inches.
Extent: at least 1 foot beyond the drip line and 3 feet high (Figure 10-20).
Duration: in place and inspected before any clearing or demolition, and kept until construction is complete.
Removal: only if site access is obstructed, approved and inspected by the City's Arborist. If removal stresses or damages the tree, its removal or replacement may be required.
Alternatives. Where barriers beyond the drip line are not feasible, alternatives such as pumping concrete over roots or bridging with steel plates, must be designed by a certified arborist and approved by the DCO before a DO or permit.
Inside the barrier and the Tree Protection Zone: no fill, materials, debris or litter, and any demolition by hand-operated equipment only. No grading, excavation or construction in the Tree Protection Zone without the written approval, and generally the supervision, of an Approved Arborist (defined above, under submittals).
Roots. Where the Tree Protection Zone is disturbed, roots are severed with clean cuts by a root pruning machine. Before grading, pad preparation or excavation, impacted roots are pruned one foot outside the barriers (or as the DCO determines) by a licensed arborist, and the City's arborist may attend. The critical root zone is the greater of the dripline or nine inches of radius per diameter inch at fifty-four inches.
Relocated trees may be no larger than eight inches in diameter, with forty-eight hours' notice to the Building Division.
Reporting. A monthly status report goes to the Building Division, and a Certified Arborist inspects the site bi-weekly, from permit approval until the CO. The contractor meets the erosion control and tree protection inspectors before any demolition permit.
Consequences. Disregarding the barricades may require full replacement of the protected tree.
Replacement and landscaping on a development site
Replacement follows Table 10-8, with the Tree Fund payment for any deficit, computed on the Table 10-2 worksheet, whose rows multiply inches by the replacement rate and whose first column is headed DBH. Retention ponds may take replacement trees, subject to conditions in the code. All DO sites must use field-grown trees. The Table 10-9 species are recommended, not mandatory. In Activity Centers and Multimodal Corridors, the citywide Chapter 10 standards apply wherever Chapter 7 is silent (Section 10.5.1).
Development fees, clearing and contractors
Site plan fees (government): $1,200.00 up to one acre. At or above one acre, $1,200.00 for the first acre and $250.00 for each additional acre or portion. The tree fees above carry no development distinction.
Clearing and grubbing. The code refers to site clearing, grubbing and demolition permits. It defines grubbing to include "Any excavation activity", and Appendix B has no separate fee line for them.
Tree services need a current BTR to apply for an owner. The schedule lists Landscape and Horticultural Services (078x) at $52.00 (Sec. 22-114), and receipts are due before business begins (Sec. 22-107). There is no tree service license category, and no insurance or bond requirement for tree work.
Erosion. Owners and contractors must follow the City's notice to contractors, and a failure to install or maintain the required Best Management Practices may bring a stop work order (Section 10.6.3(E)(1)). The DCO may also issue stop work orders for noncompliance with a DO (Section 2.1.1).
Right-of-way, utilities and appeals are covered in their sections above.
Where the city's guidance and its code differ
The code is the law in each case.
The trigger. Ask a Planner says 4 inches in diameter and palms over 4.5 feet tall. The code says four inches caliper, and palms with four and one-half feet of clear trunk.
Diseased trees on non-residential property. The form requires "a signed letter from a Certified Arborist" to waive fees and replacement. The code waives both for dead, dying or diseased trees with no letter and no property-type distinction. Ask the Planning Division how it applies the footnote.
Submission. One city page says online and another says City Hall. The code requires only an application on forms provided by the City.
Fees. Ask a Planner mentions only the no-charge permits. It does not mention the $20.00 permit or the $25.00 per caliper inch fee.
Open questions in the code itself
Caliper or DBH, both for the protection threshold and for the per-inch fee (above).
Whether the per-inch Tree Removal Fee is the fee in lieu of replacement.
The invasive list. The exemption refers to the council's current list, while the Chapter 20 definition of Invasive Exotic Plant says Category 1 only.
"Licensed arborist" is required in three places and defined nowhere.
A broken cross-reference. Section 10.6.3(E)(1) points to Sec. 22-107 for construction inspection, but Sec. 22-107 is a business tax receipt section.
Mangroves and FS 163.045 (above).
What the Largo code does not say
A search of the whole codified text of both codes on September 28, 2026 found:
No reference to Florida Statute 163.045.
No bond, surety or insurance requirement for tree work.
No tree bank. The Tree Fund is the mechanism.
No specimen, heritage, grand or historic tree category.
No definition of Palm, Clear Trunk or licensed arborist.
No tree service license category.
No clearing or grubbing permit fee line.
No tree retention or canopy percentage.
No deadline for the city to act on an application.
Pending ordinances listed by Municode (seven for the Code of Ordinances, two for the CDC) were not read.
Screening a tree service for work in Largo
The code's one demand of a tree service is a current BTR on file with the city, and it sets no insurance requirement. Ask any company two things before work starts. Will it confirm with the city, before cutting, whether each tree needs a permit? And will it show you its general liability and workers compensation certificates? Ken's Tree Service leads with both certificates. On a development site, ask the same of every contractor, because stop work orders, fines and liens reach the site and the violator.
Where this leaves your tree
Check the address with the Address Lookup Tool.
Inside the city, ask both governments how each applies its rule, since the codes leave the city-or-county question open.
Measure each tree at both heights, and each palm's clear trunk. Any palm species counts.
Check the exemptions table.
On a single-family detached lot, check every condition of Florida Statute 163.045. For a mangrove, ask the Planning Division and Pinellas County.
On a commercial, multifamily, mobile home, HOA or development site, check the DO, landscape plan and tree protection conditions first.
Ask the Planning Division, 727-587-6749 Ext. 7301 or [email protected], before any protected tree comes out.
Whether a particular tree is over a threshold at either measuring point, and whether it falls under an exemption, are questions about that tree. They are what an on-site residential tree assessment is there to clarify. 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.
To start, open a conversation with our website agent, the chat on this page, and describe the tree, the address and what you are planning. Our phone number is 727-934-5804.
Sources and scope
Read September 28, 2026:
City of Largo Comprehensive Development Code, Chapters 10 and 20, and Sections 2.1.1, 2.1.7, 3.2.1, 3.3.1, 3.4.1, 3.5.5, 3.5.6, 3.5.9, 3.7.7, 3.8.1, 3.8.2, 3.8.3, 4.3.1, 4.3.4, 4.4.1, 4.4.3, 4.4.4, 4.4.5, 7.2.3, 11.9.1 and 11.16.6, codified through Ordinance No. 2026-07, adopted May 19, 2026 (Supp. No. 18).
City of Largo Code of Ordinances, Secs. 9-46, 9-72, 9-74, 9-102, 9-106, 9-137, 9-138, 17-7, 19-25, 21-23, 22-107, 22-114 and Appendix B, codified through Ordinance No. 2025-07, adopted June 2, 2026 (Supp. No. 18).
Florida Statute 163.045 and Florida Statute 403.9326; the Florida Department of Environmental Protection delegated local governments list.
Pinellas County Code Sec. 58-808 and Sec. 58-809, codified through Ordinance No. 26-13, enacted March 24, 2026 (Supp. No. 124), and the county's Address Lookup Tool.
City guidance, which is not law: Ask a Planner, Permit Types, Applications and Forms, the Tree Removal Application, the annexation FAQ and Annexation Process pages.
Quotations are in plain text, with straight marks, and omissions marked [...]. This guide explains the City of Largo's tree rules as codified on the dates above. It is not legal advice, and it does not determine whether any address is inside the city or whether any tree or property needs a permit. Those decisions belong to the City of Largo and, for unincorporated property, mangroves and county rights-of-way, to Pinellas County. For the current position, contact the Planning Division at 727-587-6749 Ext. 7301 or [email protected].