Permits & Ordinances
A plain-English guide to Roswell’s tree ordinance and the rules in the neighboring North Fulton cities — checked against each city’s own pages on September 28, 2026.
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In Roswell, often yes. The city has a tree ordinance, and the answer depends on how big the tree is, what kind it is, how big your lot is, and where on the lot it stands. Most of the cities around Roswell have their own ordinance, and no two are the same: Alpharetta wants an application for any live tree, Johns Creek only cares about the biggest ones and protected zones, Dunwoody mostly leaves single-family lots alone. Below is what each city publishes, with the page it publishes it on. Rules change — Johns Creek loosened theirs in July 2025 and Sandy Springs amended theirs in September 2025 — so treat this as a map, not a ruling, and confirm with the city before a saw starts. We check every job against the current rules during the free estimate.
City of Roswell
Roswell regulates trees through Article 12 of its Unified Development Code. Two things determine whether your removal needs a Tree Removal Permit:
One honest wrinkle: the City’s own trees FAQ and Code Enforcement pages say a permit is required for any tree over 3 inches without mentioning the under-one-acre exemption in the ordinance. If your lot is under an acre and the tree isn’t specimen-sized, the ordinance is on your side — but a two-minute call to Engineering settles it, and that’s what we do before scheduling.
Other triggers regardless of size: trees in a stream buffer (UDC Section 12.2), and any property within 2,000 feet of the Chattahoochee River, where the City asks you to contact Planning & Zoning before removing anything.
Dead and hazardous trees. The ordinance exempts “any tree which has become or threatens to become a danger to human life or property.” Photograph the tree before it comes down; the City doesn’t publish an arborist-letter requirement for Roswell, but documentation is cheap insurance if a neighbor or inspector asks later.
How to apply. The Tree Removal Permit is issued by the Engineering Division of Community Development through the City’s online permitting hub. A specimen-tree permit asks you to show that alternatives were considered and that the removal is the minimum necessary; approved specimen removals carry a contribution to the City tree fund (the ordinance sets it at $500 per tree density unit, with $220 per unit in lieu of replacement plantings). The City’s 2022 permit packet listed a $25 application fee and $50 for residential lots of an acre or more; the City now publishes a 2025 fee schedule, so check the current number when you apply.
If you skip the permit. Removing a specimen tree without a valid permit carries a recompense of $1,000 per tree density unit under the ordinance, on top of general code-enforcement penalties. A permit is cheaper.
Official pages: Roswell trees FAQ (roswellgov.com/faqs/trees), Engineering Division (roswellgov.com, under Community Development), and UDC Article 12 on Municode. Ordinance text last amended August 2019.
Verified against the City’s published pages on September 28, 2026.
North Fulton & Neighbors
| City | Permit for a healthy tree on a single-family lot? | What counts as protected | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpharetta | Yes — an application is required before removing any live tree, no size threshold. | Specimen: most hardwoods 24 in. DBH, pines 30 in., sweetgum and tulip poplar 30 in., understory 8 in. | Dead trees: no prior approval, but email the City Arborist with photos. Specimen removals need a risk assessment from a qualified professional and replacement plantings. No fee is listed. Decisions within 10 working days. |
| Sandy Springs | Yes for protected trees. | Any tree 18 in. DBH or larger; dogwood or redbud 10 in. DBH and up; anything in a stream buffer or within 2,000 ft of the Chattahoochee. | Hazard trees: email the City Arborist first. Tree Fund charges apply when canopy drops below the residential minimum. Ordinance amended September 2025. |
| Johns Creek | Usually no. | Specimen trees only: large hardwoods 32 in. DBH, small flowering trees 12 in.; pines are not specimen. Plus trees in buffers, the river corridor and landscape strips. | Rules relaxed July 28, 2025. A tree threatening the house can come down without a permit if it’s outside a protected zone. Replant one tree per healthy specimen removed. |
| Milton | Yes for protected trees. | Any tree 15 in. DBH or larger; small canopy trees (dogwood, redbud) 8 in. DBH and up; any specimen (hardwoods 24 in., pines 27 in.) or heritage tree. | $25 per healthy tree, max $150; fee waived for dead or unhealthy trees but a permit is still filed. Fines up to $1,000 per violation per day. |
| Dunwoody | No, outside the 75-ft stream buffer. | Trees inside the buffer need a permit and an arborist’s report (ISA-certified). | Lots must keep a minimum number of trees based on square footage. |
| Peachtree Corners | Conflicting guidance — call the city’s Community Development office. | The 2018 homeowner handout limits permits to buffers, specimen trees (hardwoods 28 in., softwoods 30 in., flowering 12 in.) and protected areas; the current city page asks for a permit for any tree, max ten per property per year. | Keep at least two live trees on the lot. |
| Duluth | No permit for single-family lots. | Buffer trees must be replanted. | — |
| Berkeley Lake | Yes, with exemptions. | Up to two non-specimen trees per year without a permit on lots of 5 acres or less; dead trees need a written arborist report (ISA-certified). | $50 application fee. |
| Unincorporated Gwinnett (Suwanee and Norcross area lots outside city limits) | No, unless the tree is in a buffer, open space, river corridor or tree-save area. | Keep at least two live trees. | County handout revised June 2025; a full ordinance rewrite was still pending as of March 2026. |
Not listed: Norcross has its own residential application (we couldn’t verify its size threshold against the city’s site), and Cumming and Suwanee keep their rules inside their development regulations. Forsyth County’s ordinance exempts existing single-family homeowners outside city limits. When in doubt, the city’s Community Development office is the answer — and the estimate visit is where we ask.
Our Part
Wrap a tape around the trunk at 4½ feet above the ground and divide the circumference by 3.14. A trunk that’s 63 inches around is 20 inches DBH — specimen size for an oak in Roswell.
Often, yes. HOA covenants are separate from the city ordinance and can be stricter. Check both.
No. A tree that’s already down or actively threatening a structure is the ordinance’s danger exemption in every city listed here. Get it off the house, photograph everything, and notify the city arborist afterward where the city asks for it (Alpharetta and Sandy Springs do).
We check the current rules for your city during a free on-site estimate.
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