Stumped by Tree Troubles? We're Here for You! - Get Your FREE Estimates!
Stumped by Tree Troubles? We're Here for You! - Get Your FREE Estimates!
River Ridge has no city government of its own. It’s an unincorporated community in Jefferson Parish, so tree removal in River Ridge runs under parish rules instead of a town code. For a tree in the back corner of the yard, that may not change much. For a tree near the street, it changes a lot.
Big Easy Tree Removal takes down trees throughout River Ridge, from lots near the river levee to streets up toward the Metairie line. This page is about removals. For trimming, planting and everything else we do in the area, see our tree service in River Ridge page.
River Ridge is strung along Jefferson Hwy (LA 48), with Harahan to the east, Kenner to the west, Metairie to the north and the Mississippi River to the south. Because it’s squeezed between two cities and a large unincorporated neighbor, one of the first things worth confirming is which side of a line your property is on. A house that feels like River Ridge but sits inside Harahan or Kenner answers to that city’s rules instead.
If there’s a grass strip between your sidewalk and the street, the parish code treats that ground differently from your yard. Under Chapter 37 of the Jefferson Parish code, public property includes sidewalks, parkways and rights-of-way. The code says no one other than a parish-licensed tree service operator or parish-licensed landscaper may plant, prune, trim or remove a tree on public property without a permit from the Department of Parkways, and that operator must also hold an arborist license from LDAF.
There’s one allowance for homeowners. The code lets owners trim vegetation between their private property line and the street right-of-way without a permit. That covers trimming only. Taking the tree down still falls under the permit rule.
So if the tree you want gone stands on that strip, work on a parish tree needs a Parkways permit and a parish-licensed operator, and it’s worth asking anyone you hire whether they hold the parish and LDAF licenses and who will apply for the permit. You can read the rules in Chapter 37 of the Jefferson Parish code.
The parish has tree preservation rules, but they apply where a base or overlay zoning district requires tree preservation. We didn’t find a River Ridge overlay district in the parish code. Outside the protected districts, the parish code we reviewed does not set a general permit for a yard tree, but confirm with the Jefferson Parish Department of Parkways before a large tree comes down, since zoning can differ from one property to the next.
The same section has a provision for hurricane damage. On a property where preservation rules apply, a protected tree damaged in a hurricane can come down right away, as long as a permit application follows within a set window, the tree is replaced, and a qualified professional holding a Louisiana state license signs an affidavit. The details are in section 33-6.27 of the parish code.
A tree can look fine from the curb and still be hollow. LSU AgCenter says that “the Formosan subterranean termite infests the wood of live trees” and warns that “weakened trees are susceptible to being blown over in high winds.” In a place sitting on the river side of Jefferson Parish, where hurricane winds are a real risk, a hollowed trunk leaning toward the house is a good reason to act before the season starts.
Other signs point toward removal too: a split running down from a main fork, a lean that keeps getting worse, a crown with large dead sections, or decay at the base. When the problem is a single bad limb, tree trimming may be enough. If you’d like a second opinion first, our River Ridge arborist services page explains a health and risk check, and termite treatment options are on our termite treatments page.
We start by walking the property with you. We note the tree’s condition, what’s under the canopy, overhead wires and whether the tree looks to be on your lot or on the public strip. Then you get a free written estimate that lists the scope before anything is scheduled.
Where there’s open ground, a tree can sometimes be dropped whole. Near a house, garage or pool, it’s taken down in sections, with each piece cut and lowered on a rope. Brush is chipped, wood is hauled away and the yard is raked when the work wraps up.
Crane removals, bucket-truck work and storm response are handled by our fulfillment partner, Gulf Coast Tree Service, which supplies the heavy equipment and the crew for those jobs. Big Easy stays your single point of contact from estimate to clean-up. If limbs are touching a power line, call the utility on your bill first and keep clear until the line is made safe.
Once the tree is down, you may want the stump gone too; our page on stump grinding in River Ridge covers it. If your property is across the line, see tree removal in Harahan or tree removal in Kenner. Our main New Orleans tree removal page explains how we approach removals across the region.
For a tree on your own lot outside a protected zoning district, the parish code we reviewed does not set a general removal permit. Zoning can vary, though, and rules change, so confirm with the Jefferson Parish Department of Parkways before a large tree comes down. If the tree is on the strip by the street, different rules apply.
Not on your own. The Jefferson Parish code treats sidewalks, parkways and rights-of-way as public property, and removing a tree there takes a Department of Parkways permit and a parish-licensed operator who also holds an LDAF arborist license. You may trim vegetation in that strip without a permit, but removal is a separate matter.
If your lot falls under the parish’s tree preservation rules, the code allows a damaged protected tree to be removed right away, as long as a permit application follows within a set window, the tree is replaced, and a qualified professional holding a Louisiana state license signs an affidavit. Outside those districts, check with Parkways. For large storm removals, our fulfillment partner brings the equipment.
Look for mud tubes on the bark, soft or crumbling wood at the base, and hollow sounds when the trunk is tapped. LSU AgCenter notes that Formosan termites infest the wood of live trees and that weakened trees can blow over in high winds. A walk-through can help you decide between treatment, pruning and removal.
If a tree on your River Ridge property is leaning, hollow or too close to the house, call 504-732-1166 or schedule your free wr