"I don’t want to be defeated," Bernie Sugrue told the Oamaru Mail.
Mr Sugrue has renovated the popular bakery, which also has new management after the last manager was convicted of theft, and said he now plans to continue renovating his other properties.
But he said there was a lot of work to do.
Mr Sugrue has faced ongoing criticism from locals and the Waihemo Community Board frustrated with the dilapidated state of the old railway station and unused properties on Ronaldsay St, on State Highway 1.
The former railway station could be a laundromat, a bar or another cafe, Mr Sugrue suggested.
"While we looked at the buildings and they needed quite a bit of repair to be sellable or tenable, we have opened a big can of worms and I’ll need to spend a lot of money but I don’t want to be defeated. That didn’t sit well with me.
Former McGregor’s manager Corey Hondelink recently appeared in the Dunedin District Court, admitting a charge of theft in a special relationship after stealing 285 cartons of L&P which would have been worth $7286.
The 50-year-old was caught after bosses discovered the regular delivery of the fizzy drink, which was not actually stocked in the cafe.
Mr Sugrue said the theft was "alarming and disappointing" but he was optimistic about the bakery’s future and his other properties.
"I’ve got new management there now they started this week, and I’ve had a long-standing relationship with them.
"My wife Rilla is currently helping to train them and when they have their feet under the desk properly, we will consider what next with the railway station. It could be a laundromat, or a bar or cafe, who knows?" Mr Sugrue said.
Years ago, Mr Sugrue leased out the station in an attempt to revitalise it, but the venture failed, and the building has since fallen into disrepair due to vandalism and neglect.
He said there was "a lot more work to be done" as the renovations continued.
In his 35 years running the business with Rilla, baking on the premises had not happened for about 14 years, he said.
"It’s like pulling teeth, but we’ve got to to get repairs and maintenance done, with the roof getting fixed in the next couple of weeks."
One of his properties included Marilyn’s shop in the old Appleby’s building on the main street of Palmerston, which recently moved from no 130 to 118, leaving 130 empty and unused at this stage.
"We have got plans to tidy up the whole front area," Mr Sugrue said.
The company’s foundation business, McGregors, has been selling pies to the public for more than a century after opening in 1913.
Despite construction costs soaring throughout the country, Mr Sugrue said he still planned to forge ahead with renovations on his other properties, too.
While he said the speed at which the work was being done was "not fast enough" for him, he had to rely on many other people.
"You pick a sum, and then add another 40% on to that ... we’re getting tradesmen out of Dunedin and Palmerston and they’re very busy as well."
Mr Sugrue was also spending "five or six million dollars" on a Timaru project, where he is now based with Rilla, including building a new factory.
"That keeps me busy as well with all the legislation changes and everything else that happens in the industry, " the Baking New Zealand president said.
After a rocky start, Mr Sugrue began talks with the Waihemo Community Board last year to discuss ideas to "beautify" Palmerston’s main street and to discuss the future of the now-vacant railway station cafe.
Mr Sugrue said he planned to introduce the "new management" to the board to "work together" before he he continues any further developments.
Waihemo Community Board chairwoman Heather McGregor said if Mr Sugrue wanted to have further discussions with the board "that’s all right but he can make the first move".
