Whitehouse, Smith County
Tree Service in Whitehouse, TX
Whitehouse has real rules about tree size, street clearance and land disturbance.
A tree ordinance with real teeth
Whitehouse has one of the more specific tree ordinances in the area. The city’s Ordinance 495, the Landscape and Tree Preservation Ordinance, passed February 22, 2005, bans clear-cutting of land and requires a permit to remove any tree 25 inches or larger in caliper (measured at breast height for trees over 4 inches), and it says permits may be issued when the city verifies the tree is damaged or diseased. That layer applies citywide except on agricultural, single-family (detached and attached), duplex, mobile-home and manufactured-home zoned property, so most homeowners removing a tree in their own yard aren’t affected by the permit requirement itself. The ordinance also requires site plans and plats for covered development to survey trees 8 inches or larger in caliper before building, and it lets the Emergency Management Coordinator or a City Manager designee waive its requirements during a tornado, storm, flood or other natural disaster. The Community Development Department enforces the ordinance and takes complaints from the public; since city ordinances can be amended, confirm the current version with that department before relying on these numbers for a specific project.
Clearance rules that do apply to homeowners
Whitehouse’s code sets specific trimming clearances for trees near streets and sidewalks, and these apply broadly:
| Location | Required clearance |
|---|---|
| Roadway edge | 4 feet |
| Above street at curb | 14 feet |
| Above sidewalk | 10 feet |
| From fire hydrants | 5 feet |
If your tree overhangs the street or a sidewalk, or grows near a hydrant, keeping it trimmed to these clearances is a city requirement, not just good practice.
Land-disturbance and erosion rules
The city also requires an erosion control permit for land disturbance on residential lots that need a building permit, under a separate chapter of the code. If you’re clearing part of a lot ahead of new construction, that permit, not the tree ordinance, is usually the one that applies.
The 2021 freeze hit Whitehouse hard
Whitehouse’s mayor declared a local disaster on February 15, 2021, extended 30 days on February 23, during the winter storm that also brought a boil water notice from February 17 to 25. Many residents reported burst-pipe damage and insurance claims from that event. More recently, a flash flood warning on July 13, 2026 covered Smith County including Whitehouse, with more than 3 inches of rain and Oncor, which serves this part of the county, reporting over 1,800 customers without power. An EF1 tornado also passed just northwest of Whitehouse back in February 2009, with winds of 85 to 90 mph.
Power lines and trees
Oncor is the utility that reported outages in Whitehouse’s area during the 2026 flash flood, and if a tree or branch is touching a line near your home, stay back and call the utility first, before anyone touches the tree.
Getting a Whitehouse tree assessed
Help available in Whitehouse
Common questions
Does Whitehouse require a permit to remove a tree?
Usually not on a home lot. The city's Ordinance 495, passed in 2005, bans clear-cutting and requires a permit to remove a tree 25 inches or larger in caliper, and says permits may be issued when the city verifies the tree is damaged or diseased. Agricultural, single-family (detached and attached), duplex, mobile-home and manufactured-home property are excluded from that permit layer, so most homeowners removing a smaller yard tree aren't affected. Confirm the current version of the ordinance with Whitehouse Community Development, since it may have been amended since 2005.
How far must I trim a tree away from the street in Whitehouse?
City code sets specific clearances: 4 feet clear of the roadway edge, 14 feet above the street at the curb, 10 feet above sidewalks, and 5 feet from fire hydrants. If your tree overhangs a street or sidewalk, keeping it trimmed to these clearances is a requirement, not just good practice.
What storms have caused damage in Whitehouse?
Whitehouse's mayor declared a local disaster on February 15, 2021, extended 30 days on February 23, during the winter storm that also brought a boil water notice. An EF1 tornado passed just northwest of Whitehouse in February 2009 with winds of 85 to 90 miles per hour, and a flash flood warning on July 13, 2026 covered Smith County including Whitehouse, with more than 3 inches of rain and over 1,800 Oncor customers losing power.
Where is Whitehouse in relation to Tyler?
About 7 to 10 miles southeast of Tyler via US-69.
Do I need a permit to clear land for new construction in Whitehouse?
The city requires an erosion control permit for land disturbance on residential lots that need a building permit, under a separate chapter of the code from the tree ordinance. That's usually the permit that applies to clearing ahead of construction.