Do I need approval before clearing my lot?

Yes. This one catches people out, because clearing feels like getting ready to build rather than building.

The Rules & Regulations close that gap. Architectural Committee approval of building plans must be obtained **before starting construction, including clearing of the site**. Site clearing is inside the approval requirement, not before it.

The Township side works the same way. Its zoning ordinance requires permits to be granted before any work of **excavation**, construction, alteration, enlargement or movement is begun. Excavation is named specifically.

So both the Association approval and the Township permits should be in hand before machinery arrives.

**A separate rule for common property.** Everything above is about your own lot. Cutting wood on Lake of the Pines common property is a different matter and needs a permit from the office or the Ecology Committee. Cutting there is allowed in designated areas only, the wood must be downed dead trees, and any standing wood is cut at the discretion of the Ecology Chairman. Those permits are valid for 30 days.

If you are unsure where your lot ends and common property begins — which happens more often than you would think on wooded lots — ask the office before anyone starts cutting.

The safest sequence is the same one that applies to the whole build: talk to the office early, get written approval, get your Township permits, then start work.

*Source: Rules & Regulations (7/12/2025), Building Plans; Freeman Township Zoning Ordinance No. 8, Section 14.04.*