A farmer has described how he felt "gobsmacked" as 800 people gathered on his land to object to plans to build 1,000 new homes.
Hertfordshire farmer Charlie Wray said Dacorum Borough Council initially told him 300 homes were to be built on the 160-acre land owned by the council, where Mr Wray has kept his cattle for the last 37 years.
It is part of the council's Local Plan consultation to build new homes. Wayside Farm in Kings Langley, is one of those Green Belt sites being considered.
But Mr Wray now fears for his own future. The council has revealed the figure for new houses could be closer to 1,000, which means he could lose his livelihood.
Hundreds of angry villagers gathered on the land on Tuesday (14 November) to object to the house building plans. Mr Wray said he was "gobsmacked" by the level of support shown by the people of Kings Langley.
Mr Wray told Watford Observer: “I was gobsmacked at the amount of support and the number of people who turned up to the meeting.
“I’m a lot more confident now, as it shows how strongly people feel about this. Never seen anything like it in any meetings I have been to in the village.
“Huge numbers of people walk through the farm every day and we have our own shop on site where we sell items including vegetables and milk, so it will be devastating to lose our livelihood.”
One local resident, Chelsie Harvey, told the local paper that the community is proud of Mr Wray's dairy farm, one of the last remaining in the area.
The consultation for the local plan closes at midnight on Wednesday, December 13.
