Who to call about a tree in Fort Worth

Fort Worth splits its trees between two offices, and they do different jobs. Forestry, in Park & Recreation, looks after trees on city property. Urban Forestry Management, in Development Services, covers trees on private property. Neither is us: this site does no tree work and is not part of the city. If someone is hurt, or a tree is on a wire or a house, call 911 rather than either office.

Those are their numbers, not ours.

Is it a city tree?

The usual surprise is the parkway, the strip between the curb and the sidewalk. Urban Forestry's page says removing a tree in the right-of-way needs authorization from Forestry, and "This includes tree planting or removal in parkways of residential subdivisions." The city's parkway guidelines, revised in August 2020, say any tree planted there "is the property of the City". So the tree you have been watering for 20 years may need Forestry's sign-off, whoever planted it.

No sidewalk does not settle it, since those guidelines talk about a parkway "whether a paved sidewalk is or is not provided". If you cannot tell where your lot stops, check your survey or plat, or ask Forestry before anyone cuts. For a tree near the line between two yards, the Texas State Law Library says the location of the trunk "generally determines who owns the tree", with exceptions.

Reporting a dangerous city tree

Use 817-392-1234, 311, the app or the text line above. A city newsletter describes 311 as a free nonemergency line that works only from wireless devices inside city limits. The MyFW page lists tree requests such as "Tree/Limb Down", "Tree Broken Limb(S)" and "Tree Traffic Visibility Hazard Emergency".

The Forestry page says "Due to limited resources, Forestry only responds to calls related to hazard abatement." It ranks what comes in like this:

We saw no time frames for these levels on the page. In practice, describe exactly what the tree threatens when you report it, since that is what the ranking turns on. A parkway tree that is merely in your way sits at the bottom of that list.

When your own tree threatens the public

Forestry says it "may also prune privately-owned trees that could endanger the public", and its example is a broken branch blocking a city sidewalk. The page does not say it will deal with the rest of your tree, so plan on that part being yours.

Paying someone to work on a parkway tree

You can do this, but it goes through Forestry first. The page says "The permits are a free process", "typically issued within three weeks from submittal". The removal form goes to the City Forester and asks for a site plan drawn to scale, with every tree's size and species.

Free does not mean nothing owed. The form, revised in August 2020, says trees removed from city property are replaced inch for inch, or two inches per inch at 30 inches across and up, with a payment into the tree fund if replanting will not work. The city can tell you the current amount. Trees the city bans from parkways, including ash, hackberry, mulberry, silver maple, sycamore and willow, may be permitted for removal without that replacement, and alley trees usually are too. Ask Forestry to confirm, since the form is six years old. It also prints a City Forester number, 817-392-5738.

Planning to dig? Forestry says construction or excavation plans within 75 feet of city trees "shall be approved before work begins." Ask whether that reaches a stump, a pool or a fence project in your own yard.

Wires and buried lines are neither office

Downed wires are for 911 and Oncor, whose outage line is 888-313-4747, open all day, every day. Oncor is the utility named in each Fort Worth storm report we read. If your bill names a different line company, call that one.

Before digging, Forestry's page says to "call Texas811 (811) at least two working days before you plan to dig", and to call 817-392-1234 "at least three to five working days" ahead if city signals and lights are nearby. State law sets the notice rule for 811.

General tree questions

The Tarrant County AgriLife Extension office at (817) 884-1945 lists horticulture agents and links to the Tarrant County Master Gardener Association. Its page does not mention tree questions directly, so ask what it can help with.