The Ashburton Courier spoke to Germanovitch who was at Mt Potts Station, which he owns, on Tuesday.
He said he was not happy with prior reporting and did not want to discuss the project before the phone went dead.
Germanovitch is a director of Havelock Development Ltd, which recently bought the old council building and land odd Havelock St for $2.3 million.
Germanovitch is an equal shareholder of Havelock Development Ltd with fellow director Semyon Germanovich. The company was registered in November.
Local Democracy Reporting reported the 1198ha Mt Potts and associated lodge was bought in 2011 for $3.7m following Overseas Investment Office approval.
The businessman had also bought one of the grandest, but run-down, mansions in Devonport, Auckland, in 2013 and embarked on a major renovation.
The district council said in a statement on Friday the sale of the old three-storey civic building and 5059 sq m parcel of land was settled that day.
Council chief executive Hamish Riach said in the statement the settlement had been expected at the end of January, but was brought forward by agreement.
“The paperwork has now been completed and the new owner will no doubt release plans for the site when they are ready,” Riach said.
The sale follows the former district council library across the road selling last year for $1.1 million. Buyer CBR Properties plan to renovate it into a boutique hotel.
