Progressive neighborhoods in city cores are often no different in this regard.
EDIT: this is true. There are a lot of bitter folks that call city code enforcement on their neighbors for grass being too tall or for having native landscapes. Fight the cop within yourself.
Most city cores don't have HOAs as their housing stock predates the proliferation of HOAs. They also tend to be more progressive in comparison to suburban and exurban communities. Sorry for triggering something in you. HOAs are inherently political which the meme speaks to: the veneer of uniformity is more important than structural problems.