Berkeley Lake is a 1.2-square-mile city built around an 88-acre lake, and its tree ordinance is written to protect exactly that character. The permit step here is not a formality.
Tree services we provide in Berkeley Lake
- Tree removal — hazardous, dead, storm-damaged or in-the-way trees, including crane-assisted and tight-access removals.
- Tree trimming and pruning — crown thinning, deadwooding and clearance from roofs, drives and lines, cut to ISA standards rather than topped.
- Stump grinding — ground below grade with surface roots taken out, cleaned up and the grade restored.
- Storm damage response — trees on structures, blocked driveways, hangers and split leaders.
- Tree health diagnostics — an ISA Certified Arborist diagnoses decline, pests and disease and writes a treatment plan instead of guessing.
- Cabling and bracing — structural support for split trunks, weak unions and heavy horizontal limbs worth saving.
- Lot and land clearing — selective or full clearing for building, drainage or reclaiming overgrown ground.
What makes tree work in Berkeley Lake different
Wooded lots fall steeply toward a lake held back by a 1948 earthen dam, one of the largest in the state. Working a shoreline lot means slope access, very little room to turn equipment, and an absolute rule that nothing goes in the water — so debris gets carried up rather than dropped. The city has held Tree City USA status for eighteen consecutive years, and the 2009 floods damaged the lake and dam badly enough that restoration ran until 2014.
Tree removal permits in Berkeley Lake
Yes, in writing, before non-exempt trees come down. The application fee is $50 and the permit is good for 90 days. Residential property has to hold at least 40 tree density units per acre; healthy trees removed are replaced at equivalent value and specimen trees at twice, either on your lot, on a city-approved alternate site, or by paying $400 per tree density unit into the city tree fund. The exemptions matter: lots over 5 acres, up to two trees a year on lots of 5 acres or less excluding specimens, dead or dangerous trees with arborist certification, naturally felled trees, non-native invasives such as Bradford pear, certain ornamentals including crape myrtle and Leyland cypress, and trees within 10 feet of a structure.
Where we work in Berkeley Lake
We are on jobs across Berkeley Lake regularly, including the lake itself and Lakeshore Drive, Berkeley Lake Road, Berkeley Walk, the Peachtree Industrial Boulevard corridor and Berkeley Lake Chapel. Berkeley Lake is in Gwinnett County, with the Chattahoochee River forming its northern boundary.
Why Berkeley Lake homeowners call us
- Every job is scoped by an ISA Certified Arborist, not a salesperson — so you get a straight answer on whether a tree has to come down.
- Family-owned and working in Metro Atlanta since 1985, from our yard on Nekoma Street in Marietta.
- Fully licensed and insured, and TrustDale certified.
- Written estimates before any work starts, and no charge for the estimate.
- Open seven days a week, 7am to 11pm, including storm days.
- We clean up. Chips, brush and rounds go with us unless you want the wood.
Berkeley Lake tree service questions
Do I need a permit to remove a tree in Berkeley Lake, GA?
Usually yes. Berkeley Lake requires a written permit for non-exempt removals, with a $50 fee and a 90-day window. You do get up to two trees a year on lots of five acres or less without one, provided they are not specimen trees, and dead or dangerous trees are exempt with arborist certification. Trees within ten feet of a structure and non-native invasives like Bradford pear are also exempt. We write the arborist certification and file the permit.
How much does tree removal cost in Berkeley Lake?
Price comes down to height, trunk diameter, what is underneath the tree and how much room we have to work. A straightforward pine in an open back yard is a completely different job from a seventy-foot oak leaning over a roof with no room for a crane. We price on site, in writing, and the estimate is free.
Can you get your equipment into my yard?
Shoreline lots are the challenge. The ground falls away toward the lake, there is often no turning room, and nothing can be allowed into the water, so we rig and carry rather than drop. We look at the approach on the estimate visit and tell you honestly if a crane is the only safe option.
Free tree service estimate in Berkeley Lake
Tell us what you are looking at and we will come out, put eyes on the tree and give you a written price. Call (770) 974-3964 or request an estimate online. Financing is available, and new customers get 20% off.
