The Overseas Investment Office has granted consent to an Australian couple to buy a lot at Closeburn, near Queenstown, for $3 million.
The decision, released yesterday, said Philip and Kristen Richards, of Montpier Investments Pty Ltd, had applied to the office to acquire a freehold interest in about 0.4491ha, as well as a 1/27th share in the station’s ownership.The sellers were David Salman and Walter Jarad Frost, of Indonesia.
Closeburn Station is a rural subdivision of 27 residential lots; the balance, about 1003ha, is a high country sheep and beef farm.
Each residential lot owner also owned a 1/27 undivided interest in the farm and paid annual levies which supported the ongoing operation and viability of the farm.
Closeburn Station was developed in the 1990s and involved significant investment into the farming operations, turning a once marginal sheep and beef farm into a well-maintained and sustainable operation while improving environmental standards, the OIO decision said.
"The applicant plans to construct a residence on the land for use while they are in New Zealand overseeing the continuation and enhancement of their family business interests here.
"The family business is a waste management operation which has steadily expanded over the years and now employs a significant number of employees in New Zealand."
The couple would also provide ongoing support to regional efforts to control the spread of wilding pines, which threatened and replaced native beech forests and tussock, among other things, in the Queenstown area, including at Closeburn Station, the decision said.
The transaction satisfied the "substantial and identifiable benefit to New Zealand" criteria in the Overseas Investment Act by "consequential benefits" and "previous investments".
