A bitter shouting match that touched off fighting at a North Hollywood Redevelopment Citizens Advisory Committee meeting was provoked by "outside agitators" from an ousted Hollywood redevelopment group, North Hollywood community leaders charged Wednesday.

Several Hollywood residents, who were removed from a similar redevelopment advisory committee last spring for what Councilman Michael Woo said was "wacky behavior," has accused committee members of conducting an unfair election.

The Hollywood contingent's decision to videotape the contentious North Hollywood Redevelopment Project Area Committee election meeting Tuesday night set off fist-swinging clashes. There were no serious injuries.

Brad Berlin, a law clerk representing the Hollywood dissidents, said his group was simply trying to help advise its neighbors in North Hollywood, who he said "have no idea" what the powerful Community Redevelopment Agency "is really doing to their community."

The group charged that the CRA has failed to inform the community of its plans to carry out redevelopment in North Hollywood, an accusation that committee Chairwoman Ada Klevans called "absolutely ridiculous."

Several ousted Hollywood redevelopment committee members and a handful of North Hollywood residents who attended Tuesday's meeting charged that the 16-member Citizens Advisory Committee is a "rubber stamp" for CRA projects and that last month's committee elections were conducted illegally, Berlin said.

The accusations infuriated some longtime members of the North Hollywood group, who said that for years they have been meeting relatively peacefully to help revitalize their community.

"These agitators have no place else to go, so they have moved to North Hollywood," Klevans said. "Frankly, we resent this intrusion."

Arguments broke out over eligibility requirements for candidates for vacant positions on the Citizens Advisory Committee. When a Hollywood resident attempted to videotape an exchange by positioning his camera near the face of North Hollywood committee member Guy McCreary, McCreary said he pushed aside the camera.

The incident escalated to a shoving melee. The camera was knocked to the ground. Greg Roberts, an unsuccessful candidate for a seat on the committee, complained to police that he was punched in the stomach.