Shivetya, sorry to hear about your troubles. I'm both the president of my neighborhood association, and own a company that handles the day-to-day management of associations.
The HOA itself, whose Board Members consist of homeowners living in your neighborhood, are usually good people who just want to help (but there are always exceptions). But, since these are volunteer positions, people don't always have the opportunity or time it takes to take care of everything themselves -- leading to the hiring of a management company.
Most of the management companies out there are run by people with former realty experience (Realtors, title companies, etc.), but not necessarily people who have also been on the "other side of the fence" (ie, HOA Board Members). However, many of the people who do the day-to-day work at management companies (think bill paying, driving neighborhoods, answering phones) have little-to-no training or experience with actual property management. The vast majority of my business comes from HOAs that are looking for a less abusive, more responsive management company.
My recommendation to you is as follows:
- Find out who the actual Board Members of your Association are.
- Mention your concerns and issues to the Board Members. Be specific, and brief; remember, these are volunteers and most likely won't even be aware of the issues you've run into (like the rain barrels) as that was all done by the management company.
- Don't expect an immediate resolution. While they can grant an approval/exemption right then, most likely they'll want to talk to their contact at the management company first.
- If your Board Members are dismissive or won't listen to your concerns, remember that you have the option of forcing a recall and/or running against them at the next election. Your Bylaws should have the specifics around recalling, term length, etc.