Fla. Town Adds Fines to Tree Regulations

Lakeland, Florida is cracking down on local businesses that are pruning or removing trees to make their signs more visible by adding fines and penalties to the municipal landscaping code.

City commissioners in Lakeland, Fla., unanimously voted August 20 to add penalties to an ordinance requiring Lakeland business owners to maintain landscaping.

Now, if business owners cut down trees on private property, they could face a fine based on the value of a tree that was cut down. Businesses will be required to replace landscaping if a tree is destroyed by a vehicle or a disease, and pruning trees also is prohibited, according to the Lakeland Ledger.

The new ordinance was written in response to at least six businesses in the past year that have cut down trees that block business signs.

"Many businesses have abused their landscape requirements," Commissioner Phillip Walker said after the meeting.

Cutting down trees for sign visibility has increased recently, said city horticulturist and landscape inspector Bill Koen.

Bruce Kistler, planning manager for the city, said the previous city code had only implied that businesses must maintain landscaping.

If a tree is taken down for sign visibility, Kistler said, the businessperson may be fined or required to install additional landscaping on the property.

The commission voted 6-0 to add the fines, with one absence.