PEOPLE living without planning permission on a park homes site near Beverley will be made homeless if they lose a crucial appeal, it is claimed.
Barrister Ruth Stockley told the first day of a planning inquiry into the future of Lakeminster Park, Woodmansey, that the outcome would affect every person living there.
In a complex case, Miss Stockley is representing resident Alan Coates but plans to call a long line of Mr Coates's park neighbours as witnesses.
Seventy-eight homes are affected in the dispute.
In her opening statement to the hearing at Beverley's County Hall, Miss Stockley said: "The dismissal of this appeal will result in all the residents of this site losing their homes.
"They'll be made homeless and you will hear about the difficulties they will face."
For some of the arguments relating to East Riding Council's adherence to planning procedures, Miss Stockley said she would rely on submissions made on behalf of Lakeminster Park Ltd by its barrister, David Manley QC.
In his opening statements, Mr Manley stuck to making legal points about the East Riding Council case.
His intention will be to cross-examine council officers as they give evidence during the hearing.
East Riding Council states that the planning application for Lakeminster Park was rejected for five initial reasons.
Three have now been overcome but the authority says it would still refuse permission because of "the principle of development in the open countryside" and "the impact of landscape character and amenity in the area".
The site falls outside Beverley's long-established development plan.
In her opening statement for the council, Nicola Allan said: "The site is not sustainable being in the open countryside, distant from the settlement of Woodmansey and some distance from Beverley.
"The separation from Beverley will be more pronounced with the completion of the Beverley southern relief road.
"The site is not accessible to services and facilities and this lack of accessibility is compounded by the elderly demographic of the residents.
"The council's evidence will demonstrate that the scheme causes harm in planning policy terms and is contrary to the development plan and emerging local plan."
About 50 people had made the journey from Lakeminster Park for the opening day of the inquiry.
Planning inspector John Braithwaite directed his early remarks to them.
He said the first thing he had to look at would be the Beverley Local Plan.
The park will not be allowed under the plan. Mr Braithwaite said, that being the case, he would have to find a solution.
He said: "I must find out what harm is caused by this development. Then I will balance that with material considerations."
The inspector explained that those "material considerations" would be the residents' personal circumstances and the housing land supply.
The reference to housing supply is one that residents, in the run-up to the inquiry, have been keen to mention.
The East Riding Council draft local plan includes provision for 3,400 new houses to be built across Beverley.
The vast majority of those will be on land to the south of the town but the Lakeminster Park site is not one of those identified for development.
There have been heated debates about the scale of planned house building in Beverley.
Lakeminster residents feel if they are not allowed to stay, it will make the housing need even greater, while their mobile homes will still be there.
