No person shall plant, cut, prune, remove, disturb or interfere with any living tree or shrub in any public street, alley or public place in the City without the written permission of the City Engineer.
All trees planted between the lot line and the curbline of any street shall be furnished and planted by the City, under the rules and regulations of the Board of Public Works, except that a property owner may, upon obtaining special permission from said Board, plant at his own expense trees of larger size than the size furnished by the City. The property owner shall replace, at his own expense, under the rules and regulations of the Board of Public Works, any tree that dies within a period of two years from the date of planting. The property owner shall be responsible for maintenance during this period.
No trees shall be planted in the streets of the City unless the type of the trees and the distances between the trees planted in the streets of the City are of the type and are planted with distances approved by the Board of Public Works and City Engineer.
The owner or occupant of any lot or parcel of real estate in this City shall, upon written notice from the City Engineer, forthwith trim and remove so much of the branches of trees thereon as will give a clear space of eight feet between the sidewalk and the lowest branch of such trees above such sidewalk and 12 feet above such street a distance of four feet from the curb. If such owner or occupant shall fail to cut away and remove the offending branches within three days after such notice, the City Engineer shall cause said branches to be cut away and removed and he shall report the cost of doing such work to the City Clerk, and such costs shall be a legal charge and lien against such lot or parcel of real estate whereon such trees are standing and shall be entered in the tax roll as a special charge against such real estate and shall be collected in the manner in which taxes against real estate are collected.
No person shall cut, break, tear, deface, or otherwise injure or destroy any grass plots, flowerbed, ornamental or shade tree, shrub or lamppost other than his own upon any sidewalk or in any street, alley or other public place within the City.
A.
Any tree or part thereof, whether alive or dead, which the City Engineer shall find to be infected, hazardous, or a nuisance, so as to endanger the public or other trees, plants or shrubs growing within the City, or to be injurious to sewers, sidewalks, or other public improvements, whether growing upon public or private property, shall be removed, trimmed or treated by the owner of the property upon or adjacent to which such tree or part thereof is located.
B.
The City Engineer shall give written notice to said owner to remedy the situation which shall be served personally, in the manner of service of Circuit Court summons, or posted upon the affected tree. Such notice shall specifically state the period of time within which the action must be taken, which shall be within not less than 24 hours nor more than 14 days from the giving of such notice, as determined by the City Engineer, on the basis of the seriousness of the condition of the tree or danger to the public.
C.
If the owner shall fail to remove, treat or trim said tree within the time limited, the City Engineer shall cause the tree to be removed, treated, or trimmed and shall report the full cost thereof to the City Clerk, who shall thereupon enter such cost as a special charge against the property.
No person shall delay or interfere with the City Engineer or City employees in the planting, pruning, spraying or removing of trees or shrubs, living or dead, in that part of any street lying between the lot line and the curbline or in the center of side plots of boulevards in the City, or from removing stone, cement, lumber, or other substance placed against a tree or shrub in any public place in said City.