HOA's out of control

I'm a resident of Country Meadows I, a townhome community in Oak Park. We have, in my opinion, a homeowners association that is out of control and arbitrary in their enforcement of the HOA rules.

The fact that many of these rules are questionable, I know, is both subject to debate and, as I've read before in The Acorn, something a resident has to accept or understand upon moving into such developments. But I believe this general issue needs attention in our community and elsewhere as these rules and their arbitrary enforcement is unfair and truly diminishes the quality of our lives.

In our development, we are not allowed to have trash cans outside our homes. They must be stored in our garages vs. the sides of the house, thus in summer often creating quite a stench. We are not allowed to park in our own driveways except "temporarily." We're not allowed to use guest parking for ourselves. We're not allowed to park outside anywhere overnight. We're not allowed to have our garages open and so on.

What is most galling is that these rules are very selectively enforced in our development and often renters are discriminated against over owners.

Is this what we want from our area? Bruce Sallan Oak Park