“We are not doing aged care”: Land lease operator defends Bermagui proposal

A planned over-60s land lease community in Bermagui is raising questions about where independent living ends and aged care begins.

Metacap lodged a development application in November 2023 for a $26.1 million gated over-60s land lease community in Bermagui, on the NSW South Coast, with Bega Valley Shire Council.

A total of 298 submissions were received, including 293 objections.

The 120-dwelling proposal, located on the southwestern edge of Bermagui, is being assessed by the Southern Regional Planning Panel as a regionally significant development, after council did not determine the application within the required 120-day timeframe.

In 2024, community group Bermagui Community Forum requested Metacap hold an information session due to the scale of the project and level of public interest. The session did not proceed, and the information memorandum the developer indicated it would provide was allegedly not circulated.

Following a site inspection in October 2025, council prepared an assessment report recommending refusal of the application and referred it to the panel for determination.

Council found the proposal’s density and land use did not align with the character of the area, and said it would substantially alter the landscape and affect the existing low-density bushland setting.

Metacap representatives attended the panel’s public determination meeting on 7 April, where about 20 community groups and individuals spoke in opposition.

Southern Regional Planning Panel member Juliet Grant said developments aimed at over-60s residents often raise expectations about the level of support available.

Metacap CEO Nick Jimenez said the project was designed for independent living.

“It isn’t a retirement village or aged care,” he said. “The residents can still move and drive. They are healthy people who want to live in that environment.”

Panel chair Chris Wilson asked what would happen if residents were no longer able to live independently.

“When they have difficulty moving they make a personal decision to move into aged care,” Nick said. “It could be local aged care or they could move to a completely different area.”

The chair also asked whether Metacap had engaged home care providers about delivering services on-site.

“We are not doing aged care. It isn’t an aged care development. They have the same access and same opportunities as other residents in Bermagui,” Metacap co-founder Alex Jimenez said.

Chris said the development was permissible under the “seniors housing” category.

He said the panel would decide whether to proceed with council’s recommendation or seek further information.

“Our decision will be made public within the week.”