Tandridge District Council leader Martin Fisher gave planners a shortlist of five areas for such a scheme.
He said one new Surrey village is better than "scatter-gunning" homes and cramping the current infrastructure.
But Andrea Watson from Lingfield Parish Council said it will not solve infrastructure problems and there has been "poor local consultation".
Areas around Godstone, Blindley Heath, Redhill Aerodrome, Chaldon and Lingfield are all in the running under the new Local Plan.
The district is 94% greenbelt and Mr Fisher said the council cannot meet the government's housing targets without building on some of it.
In January, the government announced Longcross as the site of one of 14 garden villages across the country.
Councillor Fisher said: "The key is infrastructure. If you do the scattergun approach you may put 300 houses somewhere and that might deliver you half an extra classroom.
"Whereas if you put 4,000 house in a new village you can actually plan the proper infrastructure in for the village [and] it's relieving the pressure on the health centres and the schools in other parts of the district."
But Mrs Watson claimed most people interested in the new homes will be London commuters, where the most pressing housing shortage lies, and so "London needs to solve the problem it is now trying to devolve to us".
She added: "The new settlement will not solve the infrastructure problems, and the infrastructure will not come until many houses have been built, if it comes at all."
The site chosen will depend on which can deliver the best mix of able housing, infrastructure gains and highways opportunities.

Gerry, who died last year after a long battle with illness, was a household name who won acclaim for his unique style of radio broadcasting.
He was honoured at a ceremony in Dublin on Friday night.
His wife Christine accepted the award and said he would have been "so, so proud".
Gerry's career with the BBC spanned almost 30 years.
He began at BBC Radio Foyle in 1985, based in his home city Londonderry - or Stroke City, as he famously preferred to call it.
His popular mid-morning programme, in which he shared his often distinctive take on life, was then broadcast on BBC Radio Ulster.
He stopped broadcasting in 2012 due to illness.
He had previously won Radio Academy awards and Royal Television Society awards and became the first Northern Ireland broadcaster to be inducted into the Radio Academy hall of fame.
Inductees in the PPI hall of fame are chosen by a group of their peers in the Irish radio industry.
"When I heard about this, I knew this would mean so much - it would've been what Gerry would've loved," Mrs Anderson told BBC Radio Ulster's Stephen Nolan Show.
"Of all the things he's had in the past, all deserving, this would've been a biggie for him.
"I'm so proud of him for that and he'll never be forgotten."
Peter Johnston, the director of BBC Northern Ireland, said Gerry had "great wit and mischief" but also brought "real wisdom and insight" to his work.
"This recognition from the PPI is a fitting tribute to a true legend of our industry, something which is often said lightly but is genuinely true of Gerry."

Taylor, who also managed England from 1990 until 1993, died on 12 January, aged 72. His funeral was attended by hundreds of fans.
A statue celebrating his footballing career will be erected at Watford's Vicarage Road ground, the club announced.
A pre-season tribute fixture in Taylor's memory is also being planned.
The exact location of the statue and details of its design have not yet been decided.
Watford said it would be working on the plans with fans' representatives and the borough council.
On its website, Watford FC described the proposed statue and pre-season match as "two significant tributes... to remember Watford's greatest ever manager".
More on this and other news from Hertfordshire
Taylor took Watford from the Fourth Division to a second-placed finish in the top flight in five seasons. He also guided the club to the only FA Cup final of their history - a 2-0 defeat against Everton in 1984 - and European football.
He also had spells in charge of Lincoln City, Aston Villa and Wolves.
Four thousand new homes could be built on greenbelt land in a new garden village development for Surrey.
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BBC Northern Ireland broadcaster Gerry Anderson has been posthumously inducted into the Phonographic Performance Ireland (PPI) Radio Hall of Fame.
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A statue is to be commissioned by Watford FC to honour the club's former manager Graham Taylor.