Real Estate
22 June, 2026
Proposed new home poses ‘unprecedent threat’
Local residents re being urged to lodge an objection to plans for a massive new home in Exeter being described as “bigger than a supermarket”.
Local residents are being urged to lodge an objection to plans for a massive new home in Exeter being described as “bigger than a supermarket”.
Sydney-based developer Rafi Assouline has lodged plans for a family compound on “pristine” land at 267 Bundanoon Road (DA 26/2375).
Opponents say it poses an “unprecedented threat” and have taken to social media to make their feelings known.
The proposed dwelling is 22 times larger than the average home with 19 bedrooms, 25 toilets running on septic tanks and 12 car spaces.
It will be 110 metres long and 10 metres high with 94 windows and massive underground cellars.
Opponents fear it will cause traffic congestion on a narrow and dangerous bend, will cause light and noise pollution for kilometres around “and may irreparably damage our national park, wildlife and drinking water”.
The exhibition period closes tomorrow (Tuesday, June 23).
According to a Statement of Environmental Effects lodged with council, the proposed dwelling “will be of a scale that is larger than the more traditional housing that is common throughout the area”.
“The unique and impressive dwelling is designed as a multi-generational, extended family space with shared living, socialising and recreational areas combined with multiple bedroom and private spaces.”
It says the proposed principal dwelling is ‘large’ but the setting is “unobtrusive and private”.
“As such the development retains the existing character of the locality of rural lots with residential occupation, in a low-density environment enjoying privacy and seclusion”.
One objector said the application should be rejected on the grounds of misrepresentation, claiming it was a “small hotel” rather than a family home.
It will feature indoor and outdoor pools, gymnasium, poker room, bowling alley, indoor and outdoor spas and two tennis courts.
Another objector said the bulk, scale and design of both the principal and secondary dwellings as well as auxiliary buildings and landscaping would have a “serious detrimental impact on the agricultural value and rural landscapes of the immediate locality”.
Another objector said she would prefer a “tastefully congruous inclusion in this beautiful part of the world” as opposed to a “dramatic alteration”.
“I appeal to council and commonsense to prevent this development from going ahead,” she said.
A number of people who live in close proximity to the proposed development say they were never notified of the DA.
One resident said the failure to notify impacted landowners was not an administrative oversight but a “material breach of the participation obligations that underpin the DA process”.
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Read More: Bowral South, Exeter