A Russian oligarch is the new owner of the former Ashburton District Council building.

Havelock Development Limited, a company that has Alexandre Germanovitch as a director, recently purchased the site for $2.3 million.

The company was registered in November.

Germanovitch also owns the 1198-hectare Mt Potts Station and associated lodge in the Rangitata Valley.

It was purchased in 2011 for $3.7m following Overseas Investment Office approval.

He now owns a slice of central Ashburton after the purchase of the three-storey former council administration building and 5059 square metres of land that was in four titles was settled on Friday.

The businessman also bought one of the grandest but run-down mansions in Davenport in Auckland in 2013 and embarked on a major renovation.

Council chief executive Hamish Riach said 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.”

The $2.3m sale price will offset the cost of the $63.2m Te Whare Whakatere, Ashburton’s library and civic centre which opened last year.

The council sold the former public library building for $1.1m last year to CBR Properties Limited, which plans to renovate the building into a boutique hotel.

It also sold two relocatable buildings for $160,000.

The project also received $20m from the Government’s shovel-ready infrastructure programme.

That reduces the total build cost of the building for the ratepayers to under $40m.

By Jonathan Leask