After almost three years of lying dormant, the Talisman Resort property could be coming back to life. New buyers have been found and a deal to purchase the property is close.

Nean Hobbs’s home overlooks Talisman Resort and its boarded-up buildings. Hobbs says it has been sad to watch the resort slowly decay since it went into receivership three years ago.

“When you live next to a ruin it's not the best of things,” he says. “When I moved up here permanently I based my move on the fact I was going to be next to a going concern a five minute walk away.”

When the resort closed it put more than 100 people out work and left creditors and the municipality on the hook for millions of dollars in unpaid bills and taxes.

The municipality of Grey Highlands took ownership of the property last year after it was put up for auction twice. Some of the adjacent land was sold but there were no offers on the resort itself.

Grey Highlands CAO Dan Best says a deal has finally been struck to sell the property, which means the municipality avoids a big financial hit while looking forward to the jobs that will be created when the resort reopens.

He says that “will create economic spin-off for Grey Highlands and Grey County.”

There have been growing concerns that the buildings would have to be torn down if they continued to sit empty but the developer that’s purchasing the property says the plan is to renovate and transform this place into a destination spa.

Once concern is mould in the buildings, which new owner Brian Ellis plans to start working on as soon as the deal closes.

“If we get to work fast enough we can actually save these buildings but time is of the essence so we are closing on May 28 and my experts will be in there on May 29 to start the process of getting rid of the mould and get that place cleaned up then start the rejuvenation,” he says.

Ellis also plans to restore the golf course but there are no immediate plans to re-start the alpine skiing operation for now. Even so, the sale of the property is welcome news for residents of the area.

“It's just such a beautiful property hopefully it can be a gold mine that contributes to contribute in every direction,” says Kimberley resident Lynne Brewer.

The exact details of the transaction will not be disclosed until after the deal closes later this month. Ellis is hoping to open the doors next year.