In May of 2023, the City Council updated the City’s tree ordinance. The main catalyst for the update was losing 1/3 of the City’s boulevard trees and trees in public parks to Emerald ash borer (EAB), a beetle that kills ash trees within 2-5 years of a tree being infested. This presented an opportunity for South St. Paul to evaluate the boulevard tree landscape to ensure that the future tree canopy is more resilient.
To help explain the new ordinance and the City’s boulevard tree policies, the City has put together an FAQ