Tree removal in Eugene, Oregon

Permit rules for removing a tree in Eugene

Eugene’s tree felling permit is narrower than most. Eugene Code 6.305 requires one to fell more than 5 trees in 12 months on a parcel of 20,000 sq ft or more, counting only significant trees, which Admin Rule R-6.305 sets at 8 in DBH. A parcel under 20,000 sq ft with a house on it is exempt under EC 6.330; a vacant parcel needs a permit for any felling. Nuisance trees, prohibited species and utility work are also exempt.

Where a permit applies, Planning’s Land Use staff (541-682-8336) handle it for the City Manager under EC 6.310. The fee sheet runs $152.07 for 1 to 10 trees, $305.25 for 1 to 10 with public notice, $610.50 for 11 to 50, and $991.23 for 51 to 100; more than 10 trees also needs a logging plan, and the permit may be conditioned on replanting.

A street tree is a separate case on any lot size. It may not be removed without City Manager approval, and approval can require a replacement or a payment set by ISA valuation (EC 6.305). Oregon’s city record shows no provider registration here, so check the company through the state license lookup instead.

What tree removal costs in Eugene

The modeled range below is crew-hours times the Oregon crew cost, with surcharges for work within 10 ft of a structure and for trees no truck can reach. In Eugene the permit rarely adds to a single removal, because a residential lot under 20,000 sq ft is exempt; where it does apply, the fee is a flat $152.07 for up to 10 trees, small next to the work itself.

What moves the price is height and access. The Eugene-Springfield mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners is $33.56 an hour by BLS figures, with 50 employed in the metro, a labor index and not a price; a small pool means a planned removal booked for summer gets a better slot than one asked for in January, the county’s peak storm month.

Modeled estimate, not quotes (method): crew-hours × $225 per crew-hour; ×1.25 within 10 ft of a structure, ×1.3 with no truck access; a crane day adds $1,500–$3,500; stump grinding is separate.

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013. Checked 2026-10-02.

Storm records for Lane County

Lane County ranks 2 of 36 Oregon counties in NOAA’s storm database, with 249 reports since 2016. High Wind leads at 122, then Heavy Snow 53 and, unusually for western Oregon, Wildfire at 22, ahead of Winter Storm 19, Strong Wind 12 and Ice Storm 10; the wildfire reports come from a county that runs from the coast to the Cascades of Lane County, not from Eugene’s lowlands.

For a removal, the useful number is the season: January, December and February are the peak months, and 70% of reports fall November through February. FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county Relatively High for ice storm and winter weather and Relatively Moderate for wind, so a tree with a split crown or a lean should come out before November, not after the first front.

NWS forecast zones covering the county: Cascades of Lane County; Central Coast of Oregon; Central Oregon Coast Range; Central Oregon Coast Range Lowlands; Lane County Cascade Foothills; Lane County Lowlands.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026 · NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions). Checked 2026-10-02. NOAA Storm Events 2016-2026; zone-based events assigned to every county the NWS zone covers using the zone-county correlation file in force on the event date (2019-04-02 file used for 2016-2018).

How removals are done here

Douglas fir and bigleaf maple are the big trees in Willamette Valley yards, and a mature fir over a house is not felled whole. Crews climb and piece it down, lowering rounds on ropes, or set a crane in the street when the back yard has no room to drop wood; see crane removal for when that pays.

Lane County’s record leans to wind, 122 high-wind reports against 53 for heavy snow, so the trees that come out after a season are often wind-thrown or leaning with a lifted root plate, which is slower and riskier work than felling a standing tree. A tree near a line is a utility question first: EWEB asks for trees of 25 ft or less under its lines and Blachly-Lane Electric for no trees within 25 ft, so a tall tree under a wire is a power-line removal scheduled with the utility.

• Crane removal
• Dead tree removal
• Large tree removal
• Near power lines

What to do next

Measure the parcel and count: under 20,000 sq ft with a house, one or two trees need no city permit; a vacant lot, a street tree, or more than 5 significant trees in 12 months does. If in doubt, call Planning at 541-682-8336 before the saw. A failing tree is worth a risk assessment first, and the company is worth checking at the Oregon license lookup before you call the number on this page.

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