Why should a city have the right to tell you how high the foliage on your property can be? Or mess with your property in any way, unless you are starting fires, etc.? https://twitter.com/tomarama/status/1126485167013531650 …
I'm not arguing in defense of the regulations, but the standard argument is "right to sunlight". I note that the Romans had laws about max building height and mandatory 2nd + story setbacks, explicitly with the intent that sunlight could reach streets and other buildings