Make HOA board meetings public and meeting minutes available

I have the unfortunate experience of being illegally fined by my HOA board. Our covenants state that any landscaping must be approved by the Design Review Committee. When making my landscaping changes, I submitted my proposal to the DRC and have, in writing, an approval letter. I installed my landscaping exactly as described.

A neighbor did not like the improvements I made and joined the DRC shortly thereafter. Subsequently, in 2023, the HOA started fining me. They fined me immediately, without an opportunity to fix, and did not deliver the letter via certified mail. They continue fining me and attempting to intimidate me, after I've spent thousands on the landscaping, and will not acknowledge the original DRC approval.

Our HOA board and DRC meetings are held in private, without notice to members or invitation to attend, and meeting minutes are seldom taken. HOAs should be required to take detailed meeting minutes and make them available to all homeowners. This will improve transparency in decision making and will publicly hold HOAs accountable to their decisions.