Predatory towing? Have you ever had your car towed?

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I have never had my car towed but I have recently seen alot of cars towed. I live in a non-gated community, made up of apartment buildings, condos, and homes. In order to park in the lots, one needs a parking permit. Every night, a towing company canvasses the community looking for cars in the lots without a permit. They get out of their truck and flash their light into the car windows to check for the permit. They start canvassing about 9pm. If one gets their car taken away by them, it will cost them about $350.00 to get it back (the towing company is based about 35 miles away). I think they are practicing predatory tactics. On one hand, people know they should have a permit but it is not like parking is tough to come by where I live. I don't even know why the towing company was hired. One can park on the streets. My apartment building has a very small parking lot, where half the spaces are reserved. However, since no one wants to pay for a reserved spot, alot of us just park on the street. In addition, the community I live in is off the beaten path so to speak. If someone not living in the community wanted to just leave their car here, they would have a long walk to town. It just isn't a convenient place to park one's car if one doesn't live here. So, essentially, I think it is just harassment to the people who live here and to their guests. I just think it is very weird for a towing company to be actively looking for a car to tow. THe other problem I have with this is that the cost is so much. THere are local towing companies so why weren't one of those hired. WHat do you think? Have you ever had your car towed? DO you think this is predatory?