Other communities fill out a very short written agreement with homeowners. Still others have no formal mechanism , they just do it and nobody complains. But in all cases, keep it simple. It takes communication, education, and negotiation between homeowners and local officials for setback planting to work. Again, arrangements vary from community to community.
Some communities prefer to treat setback trees like all other ROW trees.
Public workers maintain them, and the community is liable for any damage that occurs. Other communities turn the trees completely over to the homeowner after planting, so that the community has no future responsibility. Communities need to decide what they need. Narrow tree lawns that provide little rooting volume. High salt areas that stress trees with drought and kill their young tissues.