FRAZIER PARK, Calif. -- An advocacy group sent a letter to county officials Monday calling for the removal of a Kern County planning commissioner.

The Tri-County Watchdogs, a group of residents in the Frazier Mountain Communities, sent a letter to Supervisor Ray Watson, saying planning commission chairman Ron Sprague only represents the interest of developers, not residents.

Sprague's comments during a planning commission meeting Thursday irked residents, saying the Estates project is "the type of development that means to bring the area out of the hole."

"I was really appalled that he told us we're in a hole," said Katherine King, a resident of Pine Mountain Club. "People in this community have been working to turn this around and make ourselves a tourism spot."

Sprague and other commissioners split on what was the best course of action for the Frazier Park Estates project.

While Leticia Perez and Pete Belluomini supported a county-recommended plan that calls for 188 homes in the hills around Frazier Mountain High School, Sprague and Jeff Flores supported the full build-out proposal set forth by Fallingstar Homes, which calls for 662 housing units.

"With that being the gateway to the Mountain Communities and looking more like track homes up against the hills, that's not appealing," said Linda MacKay, a resident of Lebec and one of five people appointed to Watson's proposed Mountain Communities Municipal Advisory Council.

After the vote, Sprague then repeatedly quizzed staff about finalizing the vote on September 10, so that it could meet a county development window. The split vote delays consideration from the commission until October 8, and the Board of Supervisors until December.

Opponents, who complained they were only given 15 minutes to speak compared to the hour-long presentation given by Fallingstar Homes and Cornerstone Engineering, say the project ruins the small-town allure of the Mountain Communities.

"It's hard to imagine that there's beautiful woods when all you see is buildings," said Eric Anderson, a resident of Pinon Pines.

"You can't pull over at the kiosk or the visitors' center and say, 'Oh gee, I want to go into the mountains if what you see is Castaic.' "

County records show Sprague does not live in Watson't supervisorial district. While that may not be a big deal in most county commissions, knowing the area is critical to sound planning, MacKay said.

But under the commission's by-laws, commissioners are not required to live in the district they are appointed to represent.

Residents believe that rule should be changed.

"There was some sort of implication that he was our guy on the planning commission," said Jan de Leeuw of the Tri-County Watchdogs. "But he didn't behave that way, obviously."

Sprague and Watson say they are aware of the letter, but would not comment further, choosing to wait until the next hearing on October 8 to make any public statements.