SFRPD Anti-Tree Swing Policy
The San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department (SFRPD) has a policy against the installation of unauthorized tree swings because the safety of people and of the trees cannot be assured. In fact, several people have in fact been injured or died as a result of unauthorized tree swings. 1
There has been a record of people installing tree swings anyway, including a man known as “The Swing Guy” in 2025 who stated to the San Francisco Standard “I will keep doing this until the sun swallows the Earth”. The San Francisco Forest Alliance (SFFA) also criticizes the SFRPD’s prohibition on tree swings. In general, people seem to find tree swings to be charming and sentimental. 1