Soho House billionaire’s mansion plans for English countryside is ‘more suited to Disneyland,’ locals say

Burkle is having a hard time, however, getting approval for his rural home from West Oxfordshire officials.

He initially submitted development plans to the council in 2022. But the council rejected the proposal because it didn’t meet certain planning criteria and “would fail to represent a truly outstanding development.” His team attended review meetings during 2023 and 2024 before re-submitting its latest revisions.

Burkle’s development plan includes a new lake and installing solar panels

Planning documents seen by Business Insider say Burkle’s home design was inspired by the “English Baroque style.”

The development would include several new amenities, including a stable courtyard, new highway accesses, solar panels, a swimming pool, a lake, a tree nursery, and other landscaping.

Little Tew’s council told BI that during a recent “well-attended” meeting, there was a unanimous vote in favor of objecting to Burkle’s application.

A document submitted to the West Oxfordshire District Council by Little Tew’s council said members objected to the proposal “on the grounds that it remains an unwarranted, unsustainable and unsuitable greenfield development that runs counter to the policies of the West Oxfordshire 2031 Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework 2023.”

“In summary, this development does nothing for the local area or its inhabitants, but has the potential to cause irreversible destruction to extensive flora and fauna, and the conservation area in which it thrives,” the document said.