Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
When branches from my neighbor’s tree grow over my property line and are touching my house and/or my overhead lines, who is responsible for cutting back those branches?
The owner of the property where the tree trunk lies is responsible for the care and maintenance of the tree, according to city of Clovis Code Compliance Supervisor Tim Blair.
“If the branches are over the property line, that property owner may trim the tree back to the property line,” Blair said Tuesday.
Tree growth over property lines is a civil matter, according to Blair.
“For those who pay to have branches hanging over their property from a neighbor’s tree cut back, they could take the bill to small claims court and file against the property owner,” Blair said.
“The city does not get involved in property matters. The city has no enforcement on trees because they are considered cultivated growth and we only enforce height requirements over city right of ways,” Blair said.
Blair said if the tree trunk is in the alleyway the city will maintain the height and setback requirements of the tree.
“The first step is to try to handle it neighbor to neighbor, have a friendly conversation,” Blair said.
Do you have a question for the editors? Call 575-763-3431 or email:
