New owners of the historic Oliver's Restaurant and Lodge complex in Clyde plan to move to the township within a month.
David and Andrea Ritchie, of Auckland, bought the complex on December 22 and anticipate taking over the property in mid-February.
Previous owner Doug Bickley said there were planning and consent processes to go through before work on the property could start, as it was registered with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust as a Category 1 site.
"In initial discussions, everyone has been very helpful and encouraging as they all want to see Oliver's up and running again," he said.
Mr and Mrs Ritchie have lived in Auckland for the past eight years and are looking forward to moving to the South Island, where family members are based.
The couple have two children - daughter Charlotte who is undertaking tertiary education overseas, and son Edward who is in the final year of college.
Selling Oliver's was the "end of an era", Mr Bickley said.
"We had mixed emotions when the sale went through. It felt like the end of an era and something we would never have the opportunity of doing again . . . Oliver's really is unique," he said.
The sale marked the sixth time in 12 years Oliver's had changed hands.
Mr Bickley and his wife Lianne bought the complex in February 2008, for an undisclosed sum, after it was passed in at auction for $1.625 million.
They declined to reveal what it sold for in December.
Oliver's was made famous by Fleur Sullivan, who established the business in 1981 as a restaurant, and later opened a lodge.
She sold the property in 1997.
